Rebellion
by TheHemomancer
Summary: Set during Mk9. Shao Kahn becomes suspicious of Quan Chi's true intentions and uses his newest creation, Skarlet, to spy on him and gain insight on his intentions. Never does he suspect that she will develop a mind of her own. Rated M for lemonyness, language and violence. I do not own MK. FINISHED.
1. Birth

**Hello reader, this is a remaster of a story I have written in the past. Since my writing skills have improved, I have decided to rewrite this story.**

**This story is rated M for lemonyness (male-female and an implied rape scene), graphic violence and language.**

_**Rebellion **_**is set during the events of MK9. It begins slightly before said game and then flows into the entire story mode. Like in **_**Ascension**_**, I will be changing certain aspects of the story.**

**Some characters will seem OOC, and I'm sorry if I've drastically made them like that. **

**Enjoy this story!**

* * *

The sun set in Outworld as the Emperor, Shao Kahn, had finally noticed the prolonged absence of his comrade, Quan Chi. The sorcerer had not been seen in Outworld for the past week. Though the sorcerer was normally in the Netherrrealm, he had been residing in Outworld in order to help the Emperor with his upcoming plans of Earthrealm's invasion. But truly, Quan Chi was in it for his own personal gain.

It then occurred to the Emperor that the demon sorcerer could be up to something. It had been an entire week since Quan Chi was last seen, and it was truly peculiar. He would have come back by now, but this was not the case. Shao Kahn racked his brains about the sorcerer's disappearance.

_Perhaps the sorcerer is in the Netherrealm, gathering undead warriors to help invade Earthrealm. _

_Or, he is, most likely, plotting a betrayal against me. _

_I have to do something. _

Shao Kahn sat up in his golden throne and looked around the room. On the golden floor there was a black circle in the middle with a painting of him in the middle. The shape had black horn-like objects surrounding it. There were pillars near the doors on the left and right of the room, and a _TaiGore _stood next to Shao Kahn. The _TaiGore_s were tiger-like creatures with two extra sets of eyes and a larger body. They also possessed supernatural powers, such as teleportation and shapeshifting.

The Emperor started to think about what he could do to find out about Quan Chi's whereabouts and his true intentions. He knew that going into the Netherrealm would weaken him of his magic, as it would with his other warriors. The Emperor would need his other warriors in order to invade Earthrealm and eliminate Raiden's chosen warriors.

His options were running out.

Shao Kahn then came to the conclusion that he would have to create a warrior, and have it bend to his will, and be obedient to him and only him. He was aware that it would be a difficult task, as the warrior could easily defy him, but Shao Kahn was no stranger to executing people.

The Emperor then sought Shang Tsung to help him create the warrior. Shang Tsung had knowledge of genetics, and this knowledge allowed him to create warriors for the Emperor. Shang Tsung had created Ermac, a warrior who's being was the fusion of souls, the souls of the fallen Edenian warriors during Shao Kahn's invasion. Shao Kahn already had an idea of what he wanted his warrior to be like, in terms of appearance and abilities. He wanted her to have expert tracking abilities, as well as the ability to teleport. The Emperor also wanted her to have a useful weapon asset.

The Emperor ventured into Shang Tsung's Flesh Pits, which was where said sorcerer did most of his work and created his experiments. Shang Tsung stood in the Flesh Pits, in his bedroom chamber. He could hear the Emperor coming, so the sorcerer stood up and ventured into the main area of the Flesh Pits.

The Flesh Pits was a dark, gloomy place with several test tubes containing dead test subjects. Some of them contained Edenian-Shokan hybrids and others contained Edenian-Tarkatan hybrids. Heads and mutilated bodies were strewn on the tables and hung from hooks. A dead Edenian woman was hanging from the wall on hooks, her stomach cut open and blood and guts pouring onto the table below her.

The Edenian woman was a relative of Kitana, the Princess of Outworld. The dead woman was the first of the Hemomancers, people who had powers that involved the use of blood. She was born to a Vampire father and a Sorceress mother, their genes mixing to create the first Hemomancer. With their powers, they could materialise into and from blood, create structures out of blood, absorb the blood of others and create projectiles out of their own blood.

As Shao Kahn had arrived into the Flesh Pits, he saw the woman hanging from the hooks, and immediately remembered her as being Shang Tsung's mistress before she died. The Emperor remembered that her name was Carnala, and that she was killed for defying Shang Tsung.

Shao Kahn also remembered that she was a Hemomancer, and her excellent tracking abilities. He wanted to make his warrior like Carnala.

Emerging from the shadows, Shang Tsung bowed curtly to the Emperor. "Shang Tsung," the Emperor greeted. "Hello, Emperor. It is good to see you."

"Indeed. Now, I need you to create a warrior for me. I need this warrior in time for the Earthrealm invasion. She is to have her powers modelled after Carnala."

The sorcerer nodded. "Yes… I will start on it now."

Shang Tsung used his sorcery to sever the hooks that kept Carnala suspended in the air, causing the latter to drop onto the table. The impact caused several objects on said table to fall onto the ground in a somewhat humorous fashion. The knifes that fell off the table were lodged into the ground as a result.

Shang Tsung began chanting a mystical incantation, from which Carnala's blood was drained from her body and fused with sorcery. The blood in Carnala's body topped the average person's amount of blood. It was enough to create the warrior Shao Kahn requested. Green energy emitted from his hands, and the blood took on the shape of a person.

The person had the appearance of a woman, a red-haired one at that. She had unnatural red hair, as well as a well-conditioned body. The girl looked around the room to see two men looking at her. Quickly realising that she had no clothes on, the girl covered what she could from the view of the men before her.

"Excellent work, Shang Tsung. I am pleased with your progress," the Emperor congratulated. "Now find her some clothes."

The sorcerer smiled. "Yes, Emperor. What will we name her?" Shang Tsung headed into his bedroom chamber to grab the outfit Carnala wore during her lifetime. The outfit consisted of a red loincloth with red boots, forearm guards, a red bra-like top, a red ninja mask and shoulder armour. He returned to the girl, with the uniform in tow, and helped her put it on.

"Her name will be Skarlet." The Emperor said, having finally thought of a name. "It suits her colour."

Having dressed Skarlet, Shang Tsung picked up some of the knives that were lodged in the ground, and handed them to Skarlet. He also found some kunai daggers on the table Carnala's body laid on, and also gave them to Skarlet. She gave the weapons a whirl, and smiled. Skarlet's smile was not a cheerful smile, though. It was a sadistic one.

Skarlet's bloodlust was evident in her face as she growled at Shang Tsung. "You! Look what you did to me!"

At first, the sorcerer had no idea what she was talking about, but soon realised that Carnala was living through Skarlet's body. It was all due to Carnala's blood being used to create Skarlet. Shang Tsung had no idea that this repercussion would take place.

Skarlet then turned to face the Emperor. "And you! Why didn't you stop him!"

Shao Kahn looked bewildered. "Shang Tsung, what is going on?!"

The sorcerer turned to face his master. "It must have been Carnala's blood being used to create Skarlet, Emperor. I will remedy it now."

Skarlet let out a bloodcurdling scream and charged towards Shang Tsung. She slashed at him with her knives and followed up with a fierce uppercut. Shang Tsung regained his footing and shot three fireballs at the girl. She quickly teleported in time, appearing above the sorcerer to slash at his face, but Shang Tsung uppercutted her in time. He followed up by summoning fireballs from the ground, sending Skarlet into the air. Shang Tsung continued with his assault, attacking with a series of punches and kicks.

The hemomancer sat up, and looked at Shang Tsung with sad eyes. "Why…why Shang Tsung…why!" The sorcerer did not reply, and instead lifted her up, placing her on a table. He then uttered a mystical incantation, and the soul of Carnala left Skarlet's body. A bloodcurdling scream could be heard as Carnala's essence left the young assassin's body.

Skarlet felt as if she had been hit by a car after the ordeal. She groggily stood up, holding onto the table for support. The red assassin looked at Shang Tsung. "I'm sorry. I thought you were the enemy. I couldn't help myself…"

The fire-wielding sorcerer chuckled. "It's fine. You've snapped out of it now. Shao Kahn, what orders do you have for Skarlet?"

The Emperor looked at Shang Tsung, "I will need a moment with her, please."

The sorcerer left immediately after he was instructed to, and returned to the Throneroom. Shao Kahn looked at the girl, who looked as if she was going to pass out. "Skarlet," he began, "You were created for a purpose. You are my deadliest weapon yet, my most powerful enforcer."

Skarlet's exhausted state didn't allow her to fully comprehend what he was saying, but tried her best to listen nonetheless. "I am assigning you to hunt down a sorcerer named Quan Chi. I suspect that he plots to betray me. And for that, I want you to hunt him down and found out everything you can about what he is doing. If he plots betrayal, I want you to assassinate him." As Shao Kahn explained the mission, he used his sorcery to show Skarlet what Quan Chi looked like.

Skarlet did not know what 'assassinate' meant, but nonetheless, the mission given to her sounded fun. "Yes, Emperor."

Shao Kahn nodded. "Your training will begin tomorrow."

* * *

**-This chapter was done during class today, so forgive me if it's not the best. **

**-This story isn't going to be done in Skarlet's point of view.**

**-Carnala will be a part of this story. She is an OC based on Camila from **_**Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust**_**. **

**-R&R Welcome!**

**-I hoped you liked this chapter. **

**-What will happen to Skarlet during her training lessons?**

**-What will/has become of Carnala?**

**-I don't know, read and find out!**


	2. New Friends

**-Carnala makes another appearance in this story. **

* * *

Night fell in Outworld as Skarlet was released from the Flesh Pits and was able to go into the Throneroom under the Emperor's supervision. Skarlet had been placed under a mind control spell by Shao Kahn that would devoid her of a conscience or free will, so that she would not defect and jump ship. The Emperor decided that since Skarlet wasn't even over a day old, that she wouldn't know how to make decisions for herself.

Skarlet had been introduced to Jade, Kitana, Reptile, Ermac, Scorpion, Rain and Kano. Those warriors would be her trainers over the next few months. The hemomancer would be spending a year with each warrior, and teach her different things. Skarlet's seven years of training would hopefully pay off by the time the tournament started, which was eight years from now.

Kitana and Jade would be teaching Skarlet attack and defence, respectively. Reptile and Ermac would teach Skarlet stealth and how to use her powers. Rain and Scorpion would be teaching her to scale objects and swim and how to sense things invisible to the eye, while Kano would be teaching her strength and force.

It was getting late, and Skarlet was ready to fall asleep. Her eyes were drowsy, she was yawning, and her tired body was slanted against a pillar. Shao Kahn noticed this and decided to send her to bed. He had already made the girl a bedroom, one which she would be sharing with Kitana and Jade. All of them were girls, so it didn't really matter.

Clicking his fingers at one of the peasants nearby, Shao Kahn ordered the peasant to take Skarlet to her quarters. The hemomancer turned to face the Emperor and bowed respectfully. "Thank you, Emperor. Training begins tomorrow, yes?"

Shao Kahn nodded. "Yes, Skarlet. It will start at 5:30 AM. Have a good rest. You will need it." He smiled at her. Thanks to his sorcery, Skarlet obeyed him without question. This made things easier, as less questions were involved. Skarlet never was suspicious about the Emperor's actions, which was what made him like her the most.

Skarlet smiled in return. "Goodnight, Emperor." The peasant then took her to her quarters. The room was massive and elegant. The walls were painted red, blue and green in accordance to the colours the three shinobis wore. Inside the room were three double beds, one for each girl. Kitana and Jade were already in their rooms, talking to each other. Skarlet decided that they looked like nice girls and that they would be easy to get along with.

"Thankyou," Skarlet said to the peasant, who left in a hurry. She walked into the room, her body language showing her timidness. The hemomancer awkwardly looked at Kitana and Jade as if she had caught them doing something inappropriate. The two shinobis smiled at her, making the hemomancer's timidness fade immediately.

"Ah, you must be Skarlet! Father has told me much about you!" The blue kunoichi greeted. "I am Kitana, Shao Kahn's daughter. Over here is my friend, Jade." Kitana gestured to her friend, who smiled warmly.

Skarlet began to doubt Shao Kahn's relations with Kitana. They were completely different. Shao Kahn was cruel and opinionated, whilst Kitana was relaxed and friendly. She immediately knew something wasn't right. Nonetheless, she did not let it show. The magic that fogged her mind didn't allow her to speak badly of the Emperor.

Kitana extended her hand, which Skarlet shook, smiling. She then took off her mask, as the other women had, too. With Kitana and Jade sitting on their beds, Skarlet took the hint and sat on the bed that wasn't claimed. This bed must have been hers.

"You do not have a problem sharing a room with us, Skarlet?" Jade pondered. The red assassin did not show any qualms about her sleeping chamber.

The red assassin shook her head. "No, I suppose not. As long as you girls aren't noisy during the night. My training begins tomorrow, so I need my sleep." It then occurred to her that the shinobis before her could be the ones training her. "Are you going to be training me at all?"

"Father told me that tomorrow, I will be training you in defence. We will be learning how to dodge projectiles and other objects, as well as countering, dodging, and blocking attacks," Jade spoke. "Our training goes for a year. Then, Kitana here will be training you."

The Princess nodded. "I will be training you in attack. We will be learning how to fight with melee and projectile based attacks. Our training will be going for a year."

Skarlet felt slightly uncomfortable about training continuously for a year. But she knew that in order to complete her mission, which was to assassinate Quan Chi if he plotted betrayal to Shao Kahn, all of this would be worth it. Skarlet needed as much skill as she could.

"Do you know how the training works? Do I just learn things for an entire year, or do I do missions?"

"For the first six 11 months, you do training. In the last month, you do an exam that is based on everything you have learnt throughout the year. That is how it will work for the other training sessions," Kitana informed her.

"And what happens once I've finished all of my training?"

"Well, shortly after, the tournament begins. No doubt you'll be fighting in it. That is what the Emperor has had you training for," Jade said.

Skarlet wanted to tell them that Shao Kahn had given her a mission upon being created, but something told her not to. She decided to call it a day and go to sleep.

Sitting down on the bed, Skarlet took off her boots, her armour and her forearm guards, and put her weapons on the bedside table. As soon as her head hit the pillow, Skarlet felt even more tired. "Goodnight, girls," she said as she felt sleep take her.

Kitana and Jade looked at the girl, and smiled, "Goodnight, Skarlet," they said in unison.

* * *

_The Netherrealm_

Since Carnala's soul had been wandering around Outworld since Shang Tsung had banished it from Skarlet's body, Carnala needed to find a human and kill it, and use it's body as a vessel to find a way to be brought back to life.

Carnala had found an unconscious woman's body on the floor, and decided to use her as the vessel. Carnala's soul entered the woman's body and the woman's appearance changed from her own into that of Carnala. The bloody Edenian had returned to life…for now.

Conjuring a portal to the Netherrealm with her Edenian magic, Carnala entered it in order to strike a deal with a man named Scorpion. The spectre was hell bent on revenge and wanted nothing more than to see Sub-Zero's head on a plate. And Carnala would help him with that.

Carnala's deal was that she was help Scorpion kill Sub-Zero, and in exchange for that, Scorpion would bring Shang Tsung to her. Carnala would then kill Shang Tsung, enacting revenge, and overthrow Outworld with the power she would have from Shang Tsung's blood being splattered across her body.

Walking through the bowels of the Netherrealm, Carnala soon found herself approached by the hellspawn. The warrior had rematerialized from the flames that burst forth from the ground that the hemomancer walked on, and gave her a cold glare that would surely frighten her.

But it didn't. Carnala was never one to be afraid. The only person that frightened her was Shang Tsung and Shao Kahn.

"Who are you!" The demon roared.

"I am Carnala. I seek revenge. I know that you are a spectre bent on revenge, and with my desire for revenge, we could work together to satisfy our vengeful needs."

The demon snorted. "I would rather work alone than with a harlot such as you."

"I know that the one thing you desire most is to see Sub-Zero's head on a plate. I can help you achieve that, if you can bring Shang Tsung to me. The sorcerer wronged me during my lifetime…and I will bathe in his blood, no matter how long it takes me…"

Scorpion still did not seem convinced. "The tournament will be starting in eight years from now. During the tournament, we can achieve our goals. I promise I am not setting you up in any kind of way, Scorpion. You can trust me."

Carnala was right. Scorpion did want to see Sub-Zero's head on a plate, and if the woman could help him, the demon would surely help her get revenge on Shang Tsung.

"Very well. I will rendezvous with you during the tournament. We can set up a plan from there. I look forward to avenging my family and clan," Scorpion said to her.

Carnala smiled. "Excellent. I cannot wait to have Shang Tsung's blood pouring onto my body." The fantasy of having Shang Tsung hoisted on pillars above Carnala with his stomach cut open and drawing blood which would pour onto Carnala's face excited her. She began to cackle maniacally.

* * *

**-If it wasn't clear before, Carnala's a hemomancer, but being an Edenian, she also has some powers that aren't related to blood.**

**-I haven't decided to make any type of connection between Skarlet and Carnala. The only relation between them is that Skarlet is Carnala's descendant and Carnala is Skarlet's ancestor.**

**-Do you think Scorpion will truly coerce with Carnala's plan?**

**-Will they get their revenge?**

**-Will they be able to witness the corpses of their adversaries?  
-I don't know, read and find out!**


	3. Training Part One: Jade

**-Skarlet's training begins in this chapter.**

**-There will be time lapses from chapters 3-9. After chapter 9 is when the main story begins.**

* * *

Skarlet woke up the next morning, bright and early, and ready for her training session. Today, she would be training with Jade, who would be teaching Skarlet in defence.

The young hemomancer put on her kombat boots as well as her forearm guards and shoulder armour, and headed down to the Throneroom. Shao Kahn had left a note on her bedside table, telling Skarlet that he had organised a breakfast for her. The red assassin smiled to herself as she bolted down to the Throneroom, at a faster rate than a TaiGore could run.

Skarlet entered the Throneroom to find herself surrounded by glorious food. She noticed that there were eggs, pancakes, sausages, bacon rashers, and blood. The assassin licked her lips at the crimson fluid, which she would be dependant on to survive. Shao Kahn had killed some of Outworld's citizens to acquire the blood, and with his magic, purified the substance and provided it to Skarlet at her breakfast.

The hemomancer sat down and immediately dug into the food before her. She had never tried any of those foods before, and surprisingly found herself liking them. Skarlet carefully poured herself some blood in her cup and drunk the fluid like it was going to run away. The taste was very sweet and enlightening. Skarlet felt much more energized than she had before, and felt as though she could do anything.

Having eaten almost all of the food before her, and having drunk all of the blood, Skarlet cleaned herself up and headed into Shang Tsung's Garden, where she would be training with Jade. The hemomancer found Jade soon approaching. The green kunoichi smiled at her student.

"Good morning, Skarlet. I assure you have slept well?"

"Indeed, Jade. I am ready to begin our training."

The elder shinobi smiled once more and elongated her prehensile bo staff. "So, as you already know, I will be teaching you how to defend yourself, and how to dodge, deflect and block attacks and projectiles. Today, we will start off with dodging small projectiles."

With that, Jade pulled out a small tri-blade boomerang and threw it at Skarlet. The instructor threw it so fast that the young hemomancer didn't have enough time to react and the boomerang hit her square in the chest, causing her to cry out in pain and clutch her stomach.

Jade frowned, condemning herself for her negligence. She calmly walked over to Skarlet and helped her up. "Forgive me. I thought that you would have been able to dodge the boomerang at the natural speed at which I throw it. I will take more caution as to how I throw it. Are you alright? Do you want to stop training?"

The hemomancer looked up at Jade with sad eyes. "No, Jade. I'm fine. We have to continue our training. I do not want Shao Kahn to penalise us both. Please, Jade?"

Said woman could see the determination in Skarlet's eyes, and was proud of her. "Sure. We will do the same thing as before, except I will throw the boomerang at a slower rate." The green clad kunoichi helped Skarlet up and took her stance. Skarlet prepared herself to leap over the blade.

The kunoichi threw the blade at the hemomancer, who leapt over it with extreme precision. The blade flew past the red kunoichi and hit the wall behind her. Jade was mildly impressed with her.

"Excellent work, Skarlet! Now, we'll continue on with projectile dodging. If you don't mind, I'd like to borrow your weapons."

The young girl handed her kunai and knifes to her instructor, who gave them a whirl. She then readied herself to throw the knifes at the kunoichi. "Are you ready?"

The hemomancer nodded, and Jade threw the knifes at her. Skarlet dodged them with a front flip, the knife hitting the wall behind her with a loud _CLANG_.

Jade then picked up the knife behind Skarlet and was ready to throw both knifes at once. "Alright, Skarlet, since you can dodge one knife...let's see how you fare against two!"

The instructor through both knifes at Skarlet, who used the same tactic to dodge those knifes as she did the first time. That front flip of hers seemed to give her the ability to dodge any projectile thrown at her. Skarlet would keep this in mind in future training lessons to be sure that she would be able to dodge any projectile or attack. More importantly, Skarlet would use that technique in battle to win the fight and follow up with a brutal onslaught of attacks.

Jade was dumbfounded. Her student was only a day old and could already dodge two knifes. _Her physique must give her unique adeptness, _Jade thought. Skarlet had a slim figure with well conditioned abs. Not one ounce of fat was on her body. Jade was truly jealous of the hemomancer, even though her body wasn't too bad either.

For the next five months, Jade and Skarlet continued to practice dodging projectiles. Skarlet was getting better by the minute and was able to expertly duck and jump over incoming projectiles. Both kunoichis hoped that Skarlet's skill at dodging projectiles would carry on and give her a head start in blocking attacks.

Jade and Skarlet had now moved onto dodging and blocking both melee and projectile attacks. The new topic had started today and Skarlet was excited to start learning something new. Jade had reported to the Emperor about the young hemomancer's success, and he was very proud of her. As a reward, Shao Kahn gave Skarlet a year's supply of blood.

Skarlet went to Shang Tsung's Gardens to find Jade. That was where their training took place. Jade soon arrived, bo staff in tow. To quickly test Skarlet, Jade threw her tri-bladed boomerang at the young girl. Skarlet could hear it from a distance and performed a massive front flip, dodging the projectile.

Skarlet smiled to herself upon hearing the boomerang hit a statue. _CLANG_. Jade then emerged from the shadows, smiling at Skarlet. "I see you have not forgotten your training, Skarlet. I am impressed.

"Now, for the next part of your training, I will be training you in blocking melee and projectile attacks. We will begin with blocking projectile attacks, as that is what we have recently covered, so that should be easy.

"Are you ready?" The kunoichi finished, after elongating her prehensile bo staff. Skarlet nodded and readied herself to block any incoming attacks.

Jade pulled out her boomerang and threw it at Skarlet, who immediately put her guard up. The blade hit her arm and bounced off, leaving a small cut. Skarlet had already passed that test with a simple lift of both arms.

"Excellent work! I am very pleased with how you blocked it with such ease. Now, we will continue practicing your standing block, and then go on to practicing your ducking block. Are you ready?"

The hemomancer nodded once more, and Skarlet continued to block the next four boomerang throws. Skarlet's powers allowed her to heal from each cut. Jade was amazed at how Skarlet never let up or made a single mistake from her training, and wondered how she would go in blocking melee attacks.

"It is a pleasure to train with you, Skarlet. I am never disappointed during our training," Jade applauded her. "We are now going to practice blocking melee attacks. We will start with overheard attacks, and then medium and low attacks.

"Are you ready?"

Skarlet didn't even need to nod, as she was always ready with Jade. Jade was an amazing instructor, and Skarlet was grateful that she was able to have such a great teacher. The green clad kunoichi charged at Skarlet with an overhead slam with her bojutsu, which Skarlet managed to block. The hemomancer felt anxious, as she knew that the bo staff of Jade had brought death to many people.

Jade could see the anxiety on Skarlet's face, and condemned herself again. She did not mean to frighten the girl in any way.

"I'm sorry, Skarlet. I did not mean to frighten you. We can stop if you want," Jade said, her body language somewhat disappointed. Skarlet shook her head, telling Jade that she did not want to stop. The hemomancer composed herself and stood up, ready for the next set of training.

The two kunoichis continued to practice. Skarlet was eventually able to block every blow Jade threw at her. With each block, Skarlet's confidence rose, and Jade could see this. She was happy that Skarlet was becoming a better and happier person with each training lesson.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

Five months had passed, and Jade and Skarlet had gotten through every training obstacle that faced them. Skarlet's confidence was on a high and she was a much happier person compared to what she was like during her first few days of training. Everybody who knew Skarlet liked this change.

The big day had finally came. Skarlet's defence exam was today. It would be covering everything the young hemomancer had learnt. She made her way down to Shang Tsung's Gardens, which was where her and Jade had been training all year.

There was a suspenseful silence in the Gardens as Skarlet stood by herself, awaiting her instructor. The green clad kunoichi eventually showed up with a throw of a boomerang, which was her infamous entrance. Skarlet dodged it with ease, and was immediately ready to begin her exam.

"The big day has arrived, Skarlet. This is the exam that will be testing you on everything you have learnt over the year. At the start of next year, you will begin your training with Kitana.

"Anyway, enough from me. Let the exam begin!"

With that said, Jade began throwing projectiles at Skarlet, one after the other. Skarlet was able to dodge each with ease, but was slowly running out of energy. With every jump, flip and/or duck, Skarlet was beginning to get tired.

That realisation alone was what made her freak out about failing the exam. Skarlet began to push herself further to dodge every object thrown at her. Slowly, but surely, the exam had moved onto blocking attacks.

Jade charged at Skarlet with her bo staff, and immediately began her assault. Skarlet suddenly found the energy to block and counterattack every blow Jade threw, even though she found herself slowly getting tired again.

Before Skarlet could fall to the ground, out of energy, Jade bowed to her. The young hemomancer immediately knew the exam was over. She had passed! She had passed! This was excellent news! Even with a lack of energy!

"You have passed your exam, Skarlet. I am very proud of you. You have done very well throughout the year. Come with me, we must report to Shao Kahn about your progress. I am sure he has prepared some celebration for you."

Skarlet was beside herself with excitement. She could not wait to see what reward he had ready for her.

* * *

**-That was the first training lesson of Skarlet.**

**-It was not too hard to write, but I was racking my brains constantly to come up with ideas.**

**-The next chapter will be of Skarlet's training with Kitana.**


	4. Training Part Two: Kitana

**-Skarlet gets her first tour of Outworld o.O**

* * *

Upon completing her defence training, Skarlet reported back to Shao Kahn's Throneroom with her friend and one-time instructor, Jade. The bodyguard had informed the Emperor of the hemomancer's success in their training. As a reward, Shao Kahn had decided to reward the young girl with a tour of Outworld. Since Skarlet hadn't seen much of her homeland, Shao Kahn thought it would be a good idea to show her what Outworld looked like.

The Emperor appointed Kitana and Jade, Skarlet's allies, to take her on a walk around Outworld. They decided to show Skarlet the Living Forest, the Dead Pool, the Pit, and the Wastelands.

The Living Forest was a peculiar forest that was home to animate trees. People who wore hats and plain clothing hanged from tree branches, ropes wrapped around their necks. The victims were peasants of the Emperor that had defied him during their time as his slaves. As a result, they were hanged from the trees of the Forest.

Skarlet seemed frightened by the Forest, but didn't let it show. She was supposed to be tough, and would only show her frightened side to Jade and only Jade, as they had gotten to know each other during their training. Until Skarlet had gotten to know Kitana, the hemomancer would not open up to the blue-clad woman.

They then left the Forest and continued on to the Wastelands of Outworld. Skarlet had never been on a beach before, nor had she seen so much dead bodies strewn on the land that she and her allies stood on.

After, they continued on to the Dead Pool. The Dead Pool was a horrific place, more so peculiar than the Living Forests. In the Dead Pool, people were hoisted on hooks and were slowly reeled down into the acid below. The acid was so corrosive that it melted the victim's skin off. Said victims were killed for the same reason as the people in the Living Forest were.

Loud screams filled the area as the victims met their end as their body came into contact with the acid. This place frightened Skarlet even more, but she put on a façade in front of Kitana. The three girls continued on to the Pit.

Skarlet's eyes widened at how thin the bridge was. She was frightened to walk on it. Thankfully, Kitana and Jade did not force her to do so, as the red assassin calmed herself down.

The young girl and her allies walked back to the Fortress. Along the way there, Kitana and Jade decided to ask her questions about Outworld.

"What do you think about Outworld so far, Skarlet?" Jade asked her. She knew that Skarlet had warmed up to her during their training lessons, and also knew that Skarlet would be honest to her. The shinobi knew that Skarlet was putting on a façade due to Kitana's presence.

"I like it. It is a little bit spooky, but I can get used to it." Skarlet was shocked about what she had just said. During her 'tour' of Outworld, Skarlet was putting on a 'tough bitch' façade in order to give Kitana a good impression of her. But now, she had blown her cover. What was she going to do?

Skarlet was an assassin, and assassins aren't supposed to be soft or afraid of something. But she would rather have said that in front her allies rather than someone like Shang Tsung or Shao Kahn. Said people would chastise the girl and possibly subject her to persecution or even torture of some kind.

"Aww, is my friend _scared _of where she lives?" Kitana teased. She said this is a mocking voice, which put Skarlet on more of an edge. The young hemomancer's anxiety levels were rising by the second due to her cover being blown, and the blue shinobi was only making it worse.

Jade could see the embarrassment on Skarlet's face. The bodyguard decided to step in on her student's behalf. "Kitana, leave her alone. She is clearly under distress," the green-clad woman scolded.

The Princess turned to face Jade, "Oh, come on! I was only kidding!"

Something was up with the Princess, and Jade could tell. Though Kitana was normally very bubbly, she wasn't as obnoxious as she was acting now. "She clearly wanted to give you a good impression of her. With her cover blown, she is forced to be herself around you."

Kitana remembered the days when she was starting out as an assassin and wanted everybody to think of her as 'high and mighty.' She also wanted people to think of her as fearsome and all-powerful. But the moment she let her emotions take over was when she was forced to be herself around people. The Princess could remember how she felt then, and was able to sympathise with Skarlet's current feelings.

Looking at the young assassin, Kitana felt overwhelmed with guilt. Approaching her friend, the Princess embraced her. "I'm sorry, Skarlet. I remembered when I was feeling like how you are now, when I was starting out an as assassin for my father. I'm truly sorry. But we're your friends. You can be yourself around us, and we won't make fun of you. I promise you."

Skarlet returned the hug and looked up at Kitana with tearful eyes. In her year of living, nobody has been this kind to her. She looked into Kitana's eyes, "Do you really mean that?"

The blue-clad Edenian smiled at Skarlet, "Of course! I really do. I promise you that I will never, ever hate you, or wrong you, Skarlet. As long as you are kind to both Jade and I, then I promise you that I will never be rude to you."

Tears overwhelmed Skarlet, the young hemomancer crying in Kitana's arms. The red assassin condemned herself for letting her emotions get the better of her, but felt herself melt away in the warm embrace of Kitana's arms. She had never felt such compassion in her lifetime. Skarlet could get used to this. Jade then joined the hug, and the three women began giggling amongst themselves.

All of them knew that Shao Kahn would never allow such a happy moment, but they didn't care about that. Since they weren't under Shao Kahn's supervision, they were able to do as they pleased…

* * *

_**First Month of Training**_

With Skarlet's defence training complete, it was now time for her to be trained in attack. Kitana was the allocated instructor for attack.

Upon waking up, Skarlet headed downstairs for breakfast. Wolfing down the blood and delicious food before her, Skarlet rendezvoused with Kitana at Shang Tsung's Gardens. Said area was where Jade and Skarlet had done their defence training.

"Good morning, Skarlet. I trust you are well?"

"I am fine, thankyou. I am ready to begin training, Princess Kitana."

The azure clad Princess chuckled. "There are no formalities needed, Skarlet. Even in training. But without further ado, let us begin.

"As you already know, I am teaching you attack. I will be teaching you how to fight with melee and projectile attacks. This will also teach you some speed and work on your defence. So, to start off, I would like you to practice punches, kicks, and throws on these corpses."

Four corpses appeared before the hemomancer. Though they were dead, they were made animate with sorcery. They had been forged by Shao Kahn for Skarlet's training, and were harmless. They could not do anything but walk around.

Skarlet attacked the corpse closest to her with a short combo composed of blade slashes, and followed up with a jump kick and an uppercut. The corpse exploded upon impact from the punch. Skarlet continued her assault, attacking the nearest one with two axe kicks and another round of blade slashes. Before long, all of the corpses had been defeated, and Skarlet was a bloody mess.

"Very good. You are very fast with your attacks. I am impressed. You will continue by fighting more corpses. These next few, however, are not as easy as the first batch. On top of being animate, they can also block and attack."

Skarlet paid Kitana's warning no mind, as she sliced and diced the corpses like she had done before. The hemomancer was too fast for them. If fighting like this was easy, Skarlet wondered how easy an actual fight would be.

For the next five months, Skarlet continued practicing her attack in training lessons through attacking corpses. If she did good during said lessons, Kitana would award her with a fight, which Skarlet would almost always win.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

It was now time for her exam on attack. A year had gone already, and Skarlet was very nervous. Though she had done well in her exam on defence, the young hemomancer was still anxious about passing this exam.

Skarlet knew that the exam would be something like fighting Kitana or some other warrior. The feeling of having an idea about the exam made Skarlet feel confident about passing. She had bested Kitana before, so she would easily be able to do so now.

Heading to Shang Tsung's Gardens, Skarlet met up with Kitana. Upon locking eyes, they bowed and charged at one another. Skarlet was more than ready to fight Kitana. She wouldn't let her guard down. The hemomancer would be going all out.

Skarlet matched her instructor blow for blow and brutally snap kicked the blue woman in the chest. She regained her footing and attempted to tackle Skarlet only for said woman to knock her down with a roundhouse kick. Kitana was eventually bested by her student.

The defeated woman looked at Skarlet, "Finish me."

The young woman returned the gaze, "I will not. You are too great of a teacher to perish. You have taught me a lot. Killing you is no way to repay you."

Little did Skarlet know that this was simply a test which she had passed. Kitana wanted to see if she had compassion for victims, or would-be victims, and from the question that she had asked, the Princess had opened up a softer side of the hemomancer. She knew that her Father would not be happy if he knew about Skarlet's kind side, so Kitana decided to keep this a secret.

* * *

**-This chapter was much more difficult than writing the training session with Jade. I don't know why.**

**-Next up is Ermac.**

**-Skarlet is going soft. Uh oh! **


	5. Training Part Three: Ermac

**-The italicised part of this chapter is Skarlet's dream. **

* * *

Skarlet had passed her attack and defence exams under the guidance of Jade and Kitana respectively. She would now be ready to begin her magic training with Ermac. As a reward, Shao Kahn gave her some more blood.

Now at two years of age, Skarlet would be capable of completing her task, which was to spy on Quan Chi and assassinate him if necessary. The hemomancer knew that she would be capable of doing such a thing as this point of time, but knew that she still had more training to undergo. _Soon_, she thought.

Skarlet decided to have a nap after finishing her attack exam. Heading up to her quarters, the young girl jumped on her bed and took off her boots, forearm guards and shoulder armour. She fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Skarlet soon drifted into a state of deep sleep…

* * *

_The morning was beautiful as Skarlet got out of bed and headed down into the Throneroom to meet with her allies. The red assassin saw Kitana and Jade there, and together, they left the Throneroom to go for a walk. But the walk would not be an ordinary one. It would be a hunt. A hunt for Quan Chi. At least, that would be what it was for Skarlet. For Kitana and Jade, it would be a simple hunt for food. _

_Skarlet snuck off from her allies, and with her magic, opened a portal to the Netherrealm, where she had somehow known Quan Chi was hiding. Skarlet hastily jumped through the portal to the damned wastelands that demons called home, and immediately began the search for the pale conjuror._

_Skarlet, with her stealth, hid in the shadows as she saw a large group of people headed somewhere deeper into the Netherrealm. They looked like cult members – they were dressed in black robes with demonic markings all over their bodies, and had naginatas in their arms. They chanted some that Skarlet could not understand as they headed to their destination._

_The young hemomancer continued to follow them as the cult walked deeper into the Netherrealm. Hiding in the shadows behind them, Skarlet saw that they had been approaching Quan Chi and some mystical deity who stood next to the pale man. The young girl was intrigued by the sight of the mysterious man next to him. She had never seen, nor heard, of the man. He had red hair that was oddly styled. It was styled in such a way that it made him look as though he had horns. He wore blue robes with golden accents and a red Arabian-styled outfit underneath._

"_Your plan worked to perfection, Lord Shinnok," Quan Chi spoke._

"_Shao Kahn was blinded by rage. How foolish was he to believe that the Elder Gods would not punish him for his merging of realms," the mysterious man replied._

"_But the Thunder God and the Earthrealm warriors still live."_

_The mysterious man shook his head, "No matter. Soon, I will be free. Nor Earthrealm or Outworld will stand the Netherrealm's onslaught."_

_Skarlet heard the conversation, word for word. What did he mean, 'Soon, I will be free'? Was he confined to the realms? It didn't look like it. Nonetheless, Skarlet had gotten enough information Quan Chi, enough information to inform the Emperor of what the sorcerer's plans were._

_The young girl opened her eyes, and awoke from the dream she had._

* * *

Skarlet awoke from her deep sleep, sweating and gasping. She had now uncovered Quan Chi's true intentions through a simple dream. No, it wasn't that. Skarlet had somehow looked into the future and seen what was ahead. What the hemomancer had seen was six years away.

The young girl put on her boots, forearm guards, and shoulder armour. She then bolted downstairs, at speed that would shame the Flash. Skarlet had to tell her Emperor what she had seen and she needed to tell him _now_.

The hemomancer was feeling anxious to tell him. What if he called her a liar? Or told her she was crazy? Or if he belittled her and sent her away, and call her a hindrance? She was only trying to help the Emperor.

Finding the Emperor in the Throneroom, Skarlet bowed to him. The Emperor must have noticed her dishevelled state as he frowned.

"Skarlet, what is wrong? Why are you so flustered?"

"I-I…I had a bad dream." _That's a good start. Tell him more_.

"Tell me more," he responded.

"It was a premonition. What I saw was six years from now. You had died, and Quan Chi and some mysterious man were planning to bring ruin to Earthrealm and Outworld. At some point during the tournament, Quan Chi will tell you a lie that will convince you into thinking that the Elder Gods will do nothing to prevent your invasion of Earthrealm. You cannot believe him. I have seen it in my visions, Emperor."

Shao Kahn was bewildered with the information she had given him. He had no idea that she could see into the future. More importantly, he had discovered Quan Chi's true intentions – to bring ruin to Outworld. This was what Skarlet would need to do during the tournament.

"Very well. I will remember this, Skarlet. But during the tournament, your main mission will be to assassinate him. As soon as you see him, you must spy on him and kill him when he is vulnerable. Was there anything else you saw in this 'dream'?"

The young girl shook her head. "No, except that there was a large group of people that had strange tattoos. They had large naginatas in their heads, and were chanting something that I could not understand as I saw them approach Quan Chi and the mysterious man."

Shao Kahn knew that they were the Brotherhood of Shadow, which Quan Chi and Shinnok were the leaders of. The Brotherhood of Shadow was a cult composed of demons that were born in the Netherrealm. Upon coming of age, they were to serve Quan Chi and the Fallen Elder God. Having understood who the cult were, Shao Kahn identified the mysterious man as Shinnok. Said man had been banished into the Netherrealm after interfering with mortal affairs and being caught by his brothers and sisters.

For this act of betrayal, Shinnok was challenged by Raiden, who wanted to take his place as an Elder God. The Thunder God won the battle and took Shinnok's place. The former Elder God was sent into the Netherrealm.

Quan Chi soon found Shinnok and formed an alliance with him. Together, they overthrew the current Netherrealm leader, Lucifer, and took over the demon wasteland. Since then, the Netherrealm had been prospering.

"Thankyou for telling me this, Skarlet. I am sure Ermac is waiting for you. Run along now," Shao Kahn dismissed her. The young girl did as he said, and ran into Shang Tsung's Gardens, where she usually did her training. Ermac was waiting for her, his arms crossed as he patiently stood against a wall.

The hemomancer was surprised that he knew where she had been training, but concluded that Kitana or Jade must have told him. The young girl smiled at her new teacher and bowed respectfully. The soul-construct bowed back.

"Hello, Skarlet. Today, we will be learning how to use your power. Have you ever use it before, under any circumstances?" Ermac spoke. Skarlet was intrigued by the multitude of voices. It sounded funny, as it had many different tones. Skarlet did not know that his being was composed of many different people.

The red assassin shook her head. "No, I haven't. I have only been trained in using melee and projectile attacks in battle, as well as defence. Neither of them required me to use my power. I am not aware of what I can do."

Ermac was rather disappointed by this. He knew that both Kitana and Jade were excellent warriors, and would thought that Kitana had considered teaching Skarlet how to use her powers in battle, due to Kitana teaching Skarlet attack. The soul-construct concluded that since neither Kitana or Jade had powers, teaching Skarlet how to use hers would be somewhat difficult.

"We see. Well, Shao Kahn has told us that you are a hemomancer – a person who's powers involve the use of blood, hence why he has given you blood in the past. He has informed us that hemomancers are capable of using their own blood as mechanisms of attack and defence. They can create blood balls as well as materialise into and from blood."

Skarlet was intrigued once again by what her Master had said. She had no idea about her hemomancer powers. Skarlet remembered using them, however, when she was possessed by Carnala. After the spirit of her ancestor had left her body with the help of Shang Tsung, Skarlet had not used her powers ever. In her dream, though, Skarlet had used her magic to conjure a portal to the Netherrealm. But of course, that had never happened.

There was an eerie silence between them until Skarlet spoke up. "The only time I had used my powers was when I was possessed by the spirit of my ancestors. But I was only able to teleport. I do not remember how I did it, but I can try to do it again."

The soul-construct nodded at this, as if telling her to do it. The girl then unsheathed her knives and stabbed herself in the chest. Immediately after the weapons had impaled her, Skarlet materialised into blood, travelling underground. Blood could be seen on the ground. It moved with Skarlet, indicating where she was. The hemomancer rose from the ground, standing next to Ermac, a smile on her face.

Ermac was impressed with her ability to do as such. The soul-construct was surprised that she could stab herself without bringing pain. Of course, she was a hemomancer, so such a thing wouldn't do her any harm.

"Good stuff. Now, try to teleport. Like how you said you did before."

Stabbing herself once again, Skarlet disappeared in a red cloud that looked like pixie dust, and reappeared behind Ermac. Skarlet remembered it clearly when she had teleported during her fight against Shang Tsung, and how she teleported was not like this. Nonetheless, she was glad that she could teleport.

Ermac was once again impressed with her skill. He realised that it was not an ordinary warrior he was working with. Hemomancers were powerful people that were almost immortal. If killed, they could rematerialize with their own blood, or nearby blood. Since they were almost entirely composed of blood, it was true to say that they were immortal, unless drained of their blood, which would be lengthy and agonising process.

Ermac then wanted her to create projectiles out of her own blood. Skarlet stabbed herself for the third time and flung a ball of her own blood at a statue nearby. Said object fell to the ground and shattered into a million pieces from the impact. Though the projectile was indeed powerful and useful, it had taken _a lot _of energy from Skarlet.

The young hemomancer clutched her head as if a headache was induced. Ermac noticed this and condemned himself. He would never get the girl to do that again. Ermac fixed up the statue with his telekinesis.

For the next five months, Skarlet and Ermac continuously practiced and learnt new things about her blood-centric powers. Skarlet was enjoying the training lessons by the minute, and was harnessing them each day. Whilst it was indeed hard work, Skarlet knew it would be useful in hunting down and assassinating Quan Chi.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

Skarlet had come a long way from having almost no experience in using her powers, to being a master of hemomancy. Skarlet could use her abilities to easily assassinate and sneak up on people. Her ability to throw blood projectiles didn't have as much of an effect on her, making it easier to use. Skarlet had completely mastered everything to do with her powers.

She rendezvoused with Ermac at Shang Tsung's Gardens. Immediately upon locking eyes with her master, who was standing at least four steps away from her, Skarlet began her exam. She started off with a teleport, followed by her materialising and throwing blood balls.

Displaying everything she had learnt within a matter of minutes, Skarlet had already passed the exam with very simple movements of her body. She had now passed three training exams. Only four more were needed until she could begin her mission.

Immediately upon passing the exam, Skarlet and Ermac headed to the Throneroom to report to Shao Kahn about her progress. The Emperor told her that Reptile would be the one training her in stealth next month.

Skarlet headed into her quarters again, and fell asleep. She wanted to have another dream about murdering Quan Chi.

* * *

**-I am aware that hemomancers probably can't have premonitions. Everybody from Outworld in **_**MK **_**seems to have some kind of magical power, even Bo Rai Cho with his bile. So, to make Skarlet feel special, I gave her the power to open portals and have premonitions.**


	6. Training Part Four: Reptile

**-Skarlet's training with Reptile is in this chapter. **

**-This is the chapter with the implied rape scene. I absolutely despise rapists, so I will NOT make it graphic. It's not a lemon.**

* * *

The hemomancer reported with Ermac to Shao Kahn to inform the Emperor of her progress. Shao Kahn was very proud of the young girl, who had come a long way since her first year of training in the techniques of assassination. As a reward, Shao Kahn gave her a day out with one of his assassins: Rain.

Skarlet knitted her eyebrows together in surprise, whilst Kitana and Jade were rolling their eyes and frowning. They hoped that Rain didn't try any funny stuff with the hemomancer. But surely, if he did, Skarlet would bathe in his blood, literally.

The hydromancer male materialised next to Shao Kahn, and stood before Skarlet. He bowed courteously and reverently took Skarlet's hand in his, and kissed it. The hemomancer felt her skin crawl as his lips touched her hand. Kitana and Jade could see the fear on Skarlet's face and felt bad for her. They looked at each other and cringed.

Kitana remembered that during her time of training to be an assassin, Rain tried to take advantage of her, as he did Jade. Both females managed to knock him unconscious before he could bed them, however. Never would they allow such a vile man to lay a hand on them or their friend.

Both of them wanted to voice their opinions about having _Rain _take Skarlet for a day out. He could try and take advantage of her, or even kill her. Though she was a skilled fighter, Skarlet was not as strong as Rain, nor had she completely undergone her training. There were still four more topics to learn before she could begin her mission.

Skarlet was given a bag of money from the Emperor, "You have until 12:00 PM. Skarlet must be back in time for her training lesson." The red and purple duo headed towards a portal that would take them to the streets of Outworld. Before they could leave, Shao Kahn called Rain back.

"Harm Skarlet in any particular way and I will make sure that you become drizzle. Do I make myself clear, Rain?!" The Emperor bellowed. Skarlet felt safe at hearing the Emperor's words, whilst Kitana and Jade felt at ease. However, Rain wasn't always the obedient one, so Kitana and Jade still feared for their friend.

In the portal they went. Skarlet and Rain found themselves in the streets of their realm. They started by going into the markets to by Skarlet some clothes.

Heading into a fabrics shop, Skarlet bought coats, dresses, boots, and other items of clothing in black, red, pink, and grey. She wanted to expand her wardrobe and be able to wear clothes other than the shinobi outfit she wore everyday. Skarlet was told by Kitana and Jade to wear misleading clothes, as kunoichis are supposed to be misleading and voluptuous with their clothing to give them the upper hand. From that point on, Skarlet made sure to wear provocative clothing.

She payed for the items with the money Shao Kahn had bought her and left the store with Rain, who was growing impatient with Skarlet taking her time to pick out the clothes. The hydromancer would have preferred her naked, rather than in her skimpy outfit.

Skarlet simply scowled at him, not saying anything. Her first impression of Rain made her dislike him. She got bad vibes off of him, especially when he kissed her hand, which made her skin crawl.

For the rest of day, spending the time they were allowed, Skarlet had experienced the entire Outworld city. This would probably be the only time she would be able to see it. Skarlet loved Outworld.

Her day was going great, until she returned to her home. Skarlet was roughly grabbed by Rain by the back of her neck, causing her to drop the bags containing the clothes she had bought. The hydromancer teleported them to his quarters, and claimed her, despite her screams telling him to stop.

She saw a man outside of the door, simply watching them. Skarlet wished that he would help her, but he simply stood there. The hemomancer soon blacked out.

* * *

-Rebellion-

* * *

Some time later, Skarlet woke up in her own bed, gasping and crying. What Rain had done to her kept replaying in her mind. The girl would be traumatised for life.

She stood up and pushed her problems aside. Skarlet could hear footsteps from Outside, and decided to wipe away her tears and put on her 'tough-girl' façade. The door opened, and from it, Kitana and Jade stepped in.

Skarlet quickly feigned sleep so that they would avoid her. However, the two shinobis saw this, and decided to wake Skarlet.

"We know that you are not asleep, Skarlet," Jade chided, giggling. Skarlet decided to sit up and face them. Her allies could see the mess on her face, indicating that she was crying. They immediately knew that Rain had done something bad.

"He claimed you, didn't he?" Kitana asked, her fists clenched.

The hemomancer nodded gloomily, trying not to break down. Jade approached Skarlet and embraced her. "I knew Shao Kahn shouldn't have sent Rain with you," Jade whispered to her. "What else happened when he claimed you?"

"I saw somebody standing by the door. He just stood there. I asked him for help, but he didn't do anything. The man wore black and yellow, and had white eyes that looked through me. He was quite horrific."

From the explanation Skarlet had given them, both Kitana and Jade knew that the man was Scorpion. Said man was supposed to be a man of honour, so why didn't he help her? That was unlike Scorpion.

"Scorpion…" Kitana growled. "That was who the man was. He is a Netherrealm spectre hellbent on revenge. The demon serves Quan Chi in the Netherrealm. I do not know why he was here."

"He is also supposed to be your master, Skarlet. That man will be one of your teachers, as will Rain," Jade informed her.

Shit, shit, shit. Both of those men were horrible people. It frightened Skarlet that she would be having to put up with those horrible men. Skarlet soon found herself breaking down again.

* * *

_**First Month of Training**_

Skarlet's training was going to begin. She was going to be training with Reptile, the last of the Saurian Race. Said race had migrated from their native realm of Earthrealm to Zaterra, a long planet they had found. When Shao Kahn claimed power, he found Zaterra and conquered it, merging the Saurian realm with Outworld. Almost all of the Saurians died out, except for one: Reptile.

The lizard was a master of stealth. He could change his skin colour to blend in with his environments and camouflage, as well as turn invisible. He could also spit acid of a high pH that it could erode any substance he projected the acid at. Reptile was also exceptionally fast.

The hemomancer headed down to Shang Tsung's Gardens to meet Reptile. The young girl could not see Reptile, but could smell him through her unique ability of being able to track someone down by the smell of their blood. Skarlet giggled, "I know you're there, Reptile. I can smell you."

The Saurian revealed himself, standing in the corner. "Very good," he applauded. Walking over to Skarlet, Reptile bowed respectfully, which the girl mirrored.

"For the rest of the year, I will be teaching you how to blend in with your environments, as well as how to sneak up on opponents. We will start of today with you showing me some of your abilities. From what Ermac has told me, you are capable of materialising into and from blood, and teleporting. I would like you to show me those abilities."

Skarlet did as she was asked. Unsheathing her swords, she stabbed herself in the chest and then materialised into blood. Moving closer to Reptile, the Saurian could see the blood on the ground, which was a sign as to where she was. That was one of the things they would have to work on. If Skarlet was to _truly _master stealth, she couldn't leave any kind of clue as to where she was.

Materialising from the blood puddle, Skarlet stood next to Reptile, proudly smiling. "Very good. We will have to work on that ability, though. When you materialise into the ground, a puddle of blood can be seen. It moves as you do, and that leaves the opponent with a clue of where you are. Now, show me how you teleport."

Stabbing herself once more, Skarlet disappeared into a red cloud of what appeared to be pixie dust, and reappeared behind Reptile. "Excellent," the Saurian said. "There is nothing we need to rectify about your teleporting."

Skarlet smiled, proud of herself. For the next 11 months, Skarlet and Reptile continued to rectify Skarlet's stealth, by having her continuously practice her materialising technique and killing corpses with stealth. Eventually, the blood puddle was gone, and Skarlet had mastered her materialising technique to the fullest.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

Skarlet had come a long way from having no skills in stealth whatsoever to being a master of it. Reptile was even unable to spot her at times. Meeting up with her master at the Living Forest, which was where Skarlet and Reptile had agreed to conduct the exam, Skarlet was instructed to use her natural surroundings as a hiding spot. In order to pass the exam, she had to remain hidden from Reptile's visage for thirty minutes or longer.

Stabbing herself with her knives, Skarlet rematerialized into blood and hid underground. She quietly hid in the tree tops, near the trees where dead men hanged from. Skarlet's time limit had started.

Reptile searched the area of the Forest that he was standing in, but to no avail. He was foolish enough to not check the treetops. Skarlet kept herself hidden in the trees, trying not to giggle at Reptile's failed attempts to find her.

Skarlet smiled to herself as she heard the timer go off. It had already been an hour and Reptile still couldn't find her. She was pleased with herself. The 'Master of Stealth', couldn't find her. The hemomancer was beside herself with joy.

"Okay, okay, I give up!" Reptile called out from the ground below. Skarlet giggled to herself and jumped down from her hiding place, landing gracefully next to Reptile. "Well done, Skarlet. You are more than capable of hiding yourself. I am very impressed. Shao Kahn will be as well."

The two then left the Forest and headed back to the Emperor. Skarlet was sore from the exam, as she was forced to cram herself in the branches of a tree. When she got back to the Fortress, Skarlet stretched to relieve the pain.

The Emperor suddenly called her over.

"Skarlet, a word please."

The hemomancer walked over to the Emperor, who spoke to her quietly. "What happened when you and Rain returned from the day out I sent you on?"

_Well, shit_.

"I-I, urgh. He took me to his quarters, and claimed me. I tried to get him to stop, but he wouldn't. A man dressed in black and yellow watched as he did, and wouldn't do anything. He just stood there," Skarlet whispered back, her eyes watering.

The Emperor had specifically ordered Rain to not harm Skarlet, but he had clearly disobeyed. Shao Kahn knew the man who watched it happen as Scorpion. The Emperor would not be pleased with either of them. Both would suffer his wrath.

"From now on, I want you to be with Kitana or Jade whenever Rain is around you. As for Scorpion, I will have a word with him as to why he didn't stop Rain. I hope that you will be okay, Skarlet. I'm sorry that I couldn't do anything to help you."

Skarlet could not help but feel a vendetta against Rain, though it had happened some time ago. She wanted to assassinate the Hydromancer in turn for him claiming her unwillingly.

_In time,_ she thought. _In time. _

* * *

**-Poor Skarlet.**

**-I really don't like Rain.**

**-Why do you think Scorpion didn't do anything?**

**-Why do you think Rain raped Skarlet?**

**-Answer the questions above in the reviews. **


	7. Training Part Five: Scorpion

**-Two more training lesson-based chapters! Thank God!**

**-They are actually really difficult to write.**

**-Anyway, enough of me. Here is Skarlet's training lesson with Scorpion! Nothing could go wrong, could it?**

* * *

Shao Kahn called Scorpion over to his side. The ninja spectre was wondering about what Shao Kahn had to tell him. He thought that it would be something to do with him watching Skarlet be raped and not doing anything about it.

Scorpion didn't do anything because he couldn't. Rain had noticed him and placed a confinement spell on the demon so that he could not save Skarlet. And that was the truth. Scorpion would have saved the girl. He had witnessed his wife's rape and murder at the hands of the Lin Kuei and did not wish rape upon any female, no matter how much he hated them. He would rather condemn them to Hell.

Heading over to the Emperor, Scorpion awaited a rant. A lecture. A verbal bash, even. Shao Kahn was glaring daggers at him, his orange, black slitted cat-like eyes staring at Scorpion. When Scorpion was within whisper-distance, Shao Kahn spoke.

"What exactly happened when Rain raped Skarlet? She told me that you were there, watching her. She asked you for help, but you did nothing. Why is that, Scorpion? Have you no honour for this woman?"

The spectre sighed. "I didn't do anything because I couldn't. Rain saw me and placed a confinement spell. I could only watch. Once he was finished with the girl, he knocked me unconscious and I awoke in the Living Forest. I made my way back here to apologise to Skarlet and get back at Rain. Which I could be doing instead of answering your questions! Skarlet has already told you what happened."

Shao Kahn nodded. "I am sorry for blasting you Scorpion. But I had to be sure that you weren't planning on having Rain do this. Skarlet doesn't deserve such treatment. She's just a child. Whilst she is under your guidance this year, as you will be her trainer, I want you to take care of her. She's become paranoid. The girl constantly has nightmares about what Rain did. Every time she sees him, she breaks down. I can't have her be like this, Scorpion. That's why I need you to keep her safe from him."

Scorpion immediately felt sorry for the girl. She was not even a teenager, and she had been through so much. Already, Skarlet had been raped, and was having nightmares about it. He did not want to see how she would react upon seeing Rain.

"I will do as you ask, Emperor. But consider this: what is she to do when Rain becomes her trainer? If she's already frightened of him now, how will she react if she is to train with him for a year?"

Shao Kahn rubbed his face. He had forgotten that Rain would be her teacher next year. "Shit. I hadn't even considered that. I suppose that I will need to get somebody else to train her, then. Perhaps somebody like Tanya. She is much more trustful than Rain is, and I doubt she would try to make advances on Skarlet."

The spectre nodded in agreement, before going to Shang Tsung's Garden. Skarlet was already there, waiting for her master. Upon seeing the ninja, Skarlet recognised him as the man watching her being claimed by Rain. Skarlet had tried to get his attention so that he could help her, but to no avail. It was as if the man hadn't heard her, as he just stood there, watching Rain piledrive her on his bed.

Waves of anxiety immediately washed over Skarlet, as she began to fear the man standing before her. Though he wasn't necessarily spooky, Skarlet was still frightened about what had happened before, and feared that the man before her was probably here to claim her again, or harm her.

Scorpion could see the fear on Skarlet's face, and knew that she remembered who he was. The spectre condemned himself for what he had done, but knew that it wasn't entirely his fault. Had that demi-god not bound him under a confinement spell, Scorpion would've saved the girl and put the hydromancer away.

"Relax, Skarlet. I am not here to harm you. I have been appointed by Shao Kahn to train you for the rest of the year. We are going to learn how to sense things that are invisible to us, or out of eyesight. In doing so, this will strengthen your defence, and will require attack, speed, and at times, stealth."

Skarlet remembered his voice from the time she had been introduced to him before she even began her training. The hemomancer could not remember why she had forgotten who he was. She pushed her thoughts aside as she wanted to continue with her training.

For the past few days, Skarlet's obsession with her mission to spy on and possibly assassinate Quan Chi had grown incessantly, and it was all she could think about. Having him hoisted above her on pillars of blood that would impale him in the hands and feet, and slashing him in the chest. All of that blood and guts that would pour onto her face would be a dream come true…

"Let us begin our training," Scorpion continued. "So, Reptile has told me that you are capable of materialising into and from blood, and that you can teleport. He also told me that you were able to sniff him out when he was invisible."

"I can track one down by being able to smell their blood. That is how I am able to find out where people are, when I cannot see them."

Scorpion frowned. This just defeated the purpose of this training session. If the girl was capable of tracking down people by the scent of their blood, what was the point of teaching her how to sense people that aren't there? Of course, there was room for mastering the ability, but that was pointless. Skarlet would be able to do such a thing in her own time.

"Well, if that's the case, I truly am unsure of what to teach you, Skarlet," Scorpion said. "But with everything we can do, there is always room for improving. So as our first lesson, I am going to be hiding, somewhere in this area. I want you to find me."

She scoffed, "And that's it? I thought you were someone that expected a lot."

"Well, then I'll have to cover up my scent to make it harder for you," the demon replied, giving a small _chuckle_.

The hemomancer nodded in assent as Scorpion teleported away, hiding somewhere in the Garden. Carefully covering up his scent, Skarlet closed her eyes and put her hands together, as if she were meditating.

Through the quietness of the area they were in, Skarlet was able to hear the sound of blood flowing in Scorpion's body. Though he was dead, Scorpion's body still underwent circulation. Every person's body did, undead or alive, demon or human. With her keen accuracy and tracking skills, Skarlet was able to find the hellspawn.

Scorpion was shocked, as he had covered up his scent completely. Skarlet explained why he was able to be found, and it shocked the demon to know that he still had blood flow.

For the next five months, the two shinobis continued their 'hide and seek,' in their training lessons. Eventually, Skarlet was able to track people from more than a mile away, due to her ability to hear a person's heartbeat and be able to smell out their blood at any distance.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

Skarlet had passed yet another year of training. She was two more years closer to being able to assassinate Quan Chi. Skarlet's thirst for the pale sorcerer's blood grew each day.

It was now time for her exam on senses. In order to pass her exam, Skarlet would have to find Scorpion in under an hour. Heading to Shang Tsung's Garden, the hemomancer found Scorpion waiting for her. Both bowed to each other in respect.

Skarlet was instructed to close her eyes by her Master, and during that time, Scorpion teleported to the streets of Outworld. Skarlet had under an hour to find him. Opening her eyes, Skarlet gave chase to the demon.

Jumping to the bridge nearby, Skarlet could smell Scorpion's blood become slightly more evident. Continuing on, Skarlet could smell Scorpion's blood, the smell of which grew tenfold. The hemomancer knew that he was near.

It was not long before Skarlet had found the demon, who was hiding behind a building in a city. They went back to the Throneroom to report to Shao Kahn that Skarlet had passed her exam.

There was only one problem.

Rain would be her teacher next year.

Shao Kahn would have to fix that. He couldn't have Skarlet's trauma increase. Though the young girl's nightmares weren't as frequent anymore, she still had them every now and then. And when she saw Rain, Skarlet broke down. The only way she could be with him was if Kitana, and/or Jade were with her. But those women were busy. They had lives of their own, and couldn't be with Skarlet for one whole year. They didn't even _like_ Rain.

* * *

**-This chapter was surprisingly easy!**

**-Skarlet is probably going to go insane when she gets a taste of Quan Chi's blood.**

**-Two more training chapters left, before this story flows into the actual events of MK9.**

**-Carnala will be making a return soon. Don't you worry, I haven't forgotten about her.**

**-I wonder if any of you actually **_**like**_** her? Tell me if you do in the reviews! **


	8. Training Part Six: Tanya

** -Skarlet's training session with _**

**-Mwuahahahah!**

* * *

Skarlet had returned to the Fortress of Outworld with her then-master, Scorpion. Next month, she would be starting her training on how to swim and scale surfaces. Skarlet was looking forward to it.

She was relieved when Shao Kahn had told her that her master for the topic wouldn't be Rain, but rather a woman named Tanya. Tanya was a dark-skinned sorceress who was considered to be a 'survivor.' She had been thrown off a cliff and survived. She had Tarkatan essence released on her by an opponent, and had survived that.

Heading down to Shang Tsung's Gardens to rendezvous with Tanya, Skarlet found herself confronted on the way by Rain.

The hemomancer growled and unsheathed her swords, readying herself to fight him. Skarlet's anger and hatred for him was fuelled by the fact that he had claimed her without consent. What he had done to her had caused her to have nightmares for a year. Though they had diminished, Skarlet had still not gotten over what had happened.

"What do you want?" She growled, her voice as hard as steel.

"I want to take you out tonight. To apologise," Rain said, his voice sincere. Skarlet did not buy it, and instead thought of it as a trap for her to be raped again. She coldly declined the Prince's offer.

"No way in hell, Rain. I think we both know that you're probably going to use that excuse to claim me again. And this time, Scorpion will probably come to my aid. Besides, Shao Kahn even said that you're not supposed to be around me unless I have an escort with me. If he founds out that you've hurt me again, there'll be a price to pay, Rain.

"He already knows what you did to me, _Prince_," Skarlet spat in Rain's face. The hydromancer wiped it off and frowned in disgust.

"How unladylike of you, Skarlet. To be defying a Prince is something that will result in torture, exile, or even death. I doubt he'll be on your side after knowing you defied me," Rain said in a coy voice.

His sly comment pushed Skarlet over the edge. "SHUT UP!" She screamed before grabbing Rain by the throat and slashing at his chest twice with his knives, and followed up with a brutal kick. Rain hit the wall behind him, leaving a massive crack. Skarlet smiled as the Prince clutched his stomach in pain.

The hemomancer then grabbed Rain and threw him across the room. Another loud _BANG_ was heard and Rain was almost knocked unconscious from the impact.

Though she hated him with every fibre in her being, Skarlet could not find it in herself to kill Rain. Instead, she decided to threaten the Prince, warning him to engage in any form of contact with her.

Pointing one of her blades to his throat, and the other to his crotch, Skarlet glared daggers at Rain, her grey eyes as hard as steel, harder than any look Shao Kahn had given anyone. "If you value your life…you will not talk to me again! I swear Rain, if you ever cause trouble again, I will see it that my next bath will be in your blood. Am I clear?"

Rain gulped. He knew that Skarlet was being serious. The hydromancer had seen her kill someone before, as he had watched her in her training lessons, and knew that she was a formidable, ruthless warrior. "Yes, Skarlet."

"Crystal clear?!" She repeated herself, to which Rain nodded.

"Good boy," she mocked before slamming Rain's head against the wall he had landed on. Continuing on to her training lesson, Skarlet found that the yellow-clad sorceress was waiting for her. Tanya was tapping her foot impatiently and frowned at Skarlet due to her lateness.

"You are much later than expected, Skarlet. We must get to work immediately," the dark-skinned woman said. "Why are you late?"

The hemomancer scoffed. "If you couldn't hear it, I was dealing with Rain. The bastard tried to claim me again." Tanya laughed at her explanation, "Finally, someone did that. Did you teach him a lesson?"

"Oh, I did, don't you worry about that."

Tanya laughed, "So, as you know, I am going to be training you to swim and how to scale surfaces. For the rest of the year, I have been provided with a key that will give us access to some underground pools in the Fortress. That is where I will be teaching you how to swim. Once you have finished your swimming training, we will move on to scaling."

Skarlet nodded to show that she understood and was eager to coerce with Tanya's plans. Heading back into the Fortress, Tanya and Skarlet went down the flight of stairs that would lead to the Flesh Pits. Once they had reached the place of Skarlet's birth, they went right and walked down another flight of stairs that led to the pool.

Once they got there, Tanya locked the door to give them full privacy, and gave Skarlet some bathers to put on. It was a two-piece bather outfit composed of red and black bikinis. Skarlet went into the restroom nearby and changed into the clothes given to her by Tanya.

Tanya felt a little bit jealous about how good Skarlet's body was. While she was skinny, Tanya's body was not muscled or chiseled. It was instead soft and romantic, and a little bit chubby.

Skarlet hopped into the pool. She had never been in water; the only thing she had bathed in was blood. Skarlet liked this water.

"So, for our first training lesson, I am going to be teaching you how to swim in freestyle, backstroke and leapfrog. With freestyle, you must lift one arm up and incline your head to face the side which you lifted up your arm. If you lift up your right arm, turn your head to face the right side. Ya feel me?"

Skarlet nodded to show that she understood, and immediately did what Tanya said. Lifting up her right arm, Skarlet inclined her head to face the right side of the room. She then lifted up her left arm and inclined her head to face the left side of the room. Tanya was pleased that Skarlet was already getting the hang of it.

"Well, it seems you've quickly mastered that," Tanya said with a laugh. "Now, I would like you to use freestyle to swim from this part of the pool to the end. Go."

Skarlet treated Tanya's instructions as though it was on some kind of time limit. Swimming in freestyle, Skarlet made sure to incline her head as she lifted her arms. She eventually learnt that the smaller she lifted her arms, the faster she was able to swim in freestyle, as she was making less of a splash. Skarlet was able to swim that in ten seconds.

"Excellent work! You truly are a quick learner. Now, I am going to teach you backstroke. It is like freestyle, in that you lift your arms, but instead, you are on your back and do not need to turn your head."

Skarlet laid on her back as if she was floating, and started to lift her arms in a somewhat-windmill like fashion. Tanya was pleased with how she understood the concept, but noticed a small mistake.

"Don't lift your arms at the same time. Lift one up, and then when that arm goes into the water again, lift the other arm up. You caught on to the concept quite quickly, but your technique was wrong. With what I've just told you, I'd like you to show me your technique again."

Skarlet recognised what she had done wrong and did as Tanya had said. The dark-skinned woman was pleased once more with her progress.

"Good work. Now, use your backstroke technique to swim from here to the end of the pool, and back."

Once again, Skarlet treated this instruction as though there was a time limit. In fifteen seconds, Skarlet had swam to the end of the pool and back.

"And now, for leapfrog. It is quite simple. All you need to do is move your arms in an arch like shape, and move your legs the same way."

Skarlet frowned. "I'm not following. I don't understand what you mean."

Tanya stripped off her dress, leaving her in her undergarments, and got into the pool with Skarlet. The dark-skinned woman demonstrated what she meant, and Skarlet immediately caught on. The hemomancer started to practice the technique.

"Now that you've gotten the hang of it, I'd like you to swim to the end of the pool and back."

Skarlet obeyed and once again, treated this instruction as if it had a time limit. Swimming in the leapfrog style, Skarlet managed to follow Tanya's instructions very quickly. She liked swimming.

"Excellent! You've gotten the concept of each swimming style that I'll be teaching you in our training lessons. For the next three months, swimming will be our concentration. Afterward, I will start teaching you how to scale objects.

And once those three months had passed, Skarlet had mastered swimming. The hemomancer absolutely loved being in the water. It was like blood to her at this point.

Skarlet was now onto learning scaling. She could not wait to learn how to climb objects. It looked fun to her. Almost every morning, Skarlet would wake up and go to the pools before breakfast. Tanya had made Skarlet fall in love with the water.

Skarlet teleported to the city of Lei Chen after having been relayed a message to do so from one of the peasants on Tanya's behalf. Finding Tanya at the gates to the city, the hemomancer bowed to her in respect, which the dark-skinned woman mirrored.

"Good morning, Skarlet. As you know, I will be teaching you how to scale objects. We will be starting with a rockclimbing wall, which is next to an abandoned house."

The master-student duo headed over to the abandoned house, as next to it was the rockclimbing wall. The wall was purple in colour and had the grips that one would use to place their hands and feet on when climbing the wall. It was at least 15 feet tall – the height of it frightening Skarlet. She was quite scared of heights.

Brushing her fear aside, the hemomancer made a start by gripping onto the closest grip to her, and placed her feet on the grips below. Skarlet immediately began to feel confidence as she scaled the rockclimbing wall. Eventually, the young girl was able to clear the entire wall.

Teleporting down to the ground, Skarlet stood in front of a smiling Tanya. "You never cease to amaze me, Skarlet. Is this your first time climbing a wall?"

She shook her head. "Yes, but I have climbed a tree before. Reptile taught me how to do it whilst he was my master."

The yellow-clad woman nodded, as if to say 'I see.'

Skarlet continued to practice scaling walls, mountains, and other objects. She was eventually able to climb a mountain as high as Mt Kosciusko*. Her swimming got better every morning, as swimming upon waking up became a part of her daily routine.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

It was now time for Skarlet's exam on scaling objects and swimming. The exam would be divided into two parts; the first part would be of the swimming, and the second part would be of the scaling. Skarlet headed down into the underground swimming pools that she underwent her swimming training in and changed into her bikini.

Almost immediately after getting changed, Skarlet saw that Tanya had arrived. The woman instructed Skarlet to swim around the whole pool three times. One lap would be of freestyle, the second backstroke, and the final lap would be of leapfrog. She had only one hour to do so.

Skarlet immediately started once Tanya gave her permission to. She had been treating Tanya's past swimming instructions as though there was a time limit on them. She know knew why she had done this. The hemomancer had already finished a lap of freestyle, and was onto her second lap of breathstroke.

This was Skarlet's weak point. She was not very good at breathstroke. She did not like that style of swimming either, as she could not see where she was going. The hemomancer couldn't see what was behind her, only what was above her.

Nonetheless, she did her best in the second lap. Having completed it, Skarlet was now onto her leapfrog lap. The hemomancer found this style of swimming easy, except her arms and legs were getting sore from the past two laps. She could feel herself lowing down as she progressed in the exam.

"Come on, Skarlet, you're almost done! Go, go, go!" Tanya encouraged.

And she did. The hemomancer felt as though she had been given an energy drink, as she felt inhuman speed and strength in her. The encouragement Tanya had given her made her swim faster than she ever had, and in a matter of seconds, Skarlet had finished her laps, and the first part of the exam.

"Great job! Your time was 35 minutes. You can have 20 minutes resting time before you can start on the second part of the exam."

Skarlet got out of the pool and dried herself with the towel Tanya had given her. The yellow-clad sorceress had given her some blood to energize the tired girl, as she felt weak from the pain in her arms and legs. The girl wolfed down the blood and the pain immediately diminished. Her energy had returned to her, and she was ready to commence the second part of the exam.

Skarlet changed into her regular clothes, and went with Tanya into the Gardens of Shang Tsung, where she had been training for the past few years. Tanya used her magic to create a 20 foot rockclimbing wall, which Skarlet would have to scale in an hour.

Immediately beginning, Skarlet quickly climbed the wall before her. She was going to fast for her body to comprehend, and felt as though she was going to slip and fall. Calming herself, Skarlet continued to climb the wall as though her life depended on it.

Well, it sort of did. Shao Kahn would probably torture Skarlet if she failed her exam. The hemomancer had heard this from Kitana and Jade, which made her put 200% in every single exam. Skarlet could not bring herself to fail the Emperor.

Surprisingly, Skarlet had at least 20 minutes left of her exam. She had only about 30 metres left. _This works out perfectly, _she thought to herself as she continued to climb the wall as if she was on fire, and climbing the wall was the only way to extinguish the fire.

Skarlet had reached the top of the wall, and in doing so, had passed her exam. The hemomancer was very proud of herself, as this was the hardest exam she had been through so far. Skarlet teleported to where Tanya stood. Both of them bowed to eachother.

"Well done Skarlet. Another exam passed," the sorceress said as she used her magic to collapse the wall, "we must report to Shao Kahn and tell him of your success."

* * *

**-*Mt Kosciusko is the highest point in Australia, standing at 2228 metres above sea level. Top of the class geography? I think so.**

**-One more chapter of training left. Can't wait to start writing the actual story of this fanfic.**

**-I know, I've made people really OOC. But I've given a warning for that in the story's intro in Chapter One, so don't bitch to me about it.**


	9. Training Part Seven: Kano

**-The final chapter of Skarlet's training. **

**-Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes! You have no idea how hard these have been to write! What sucks is that they're a big part of the story.**

**-Skarlet's training session is with Kano in this chapter.**

* * *

Skarlet reported back to Shao Kahn along with her ally, Tanya. The hemomancer was given the opportunity to get a small head start on her mission given to her by Shao Kahn upon her creation.

The hemomancer was beside herself with excitement, as she had been fantasizing about having his body hoisted above her on blood red pillars, the pale sorcerer's blood dripping onto her face from a massive cut on his stomach, courtesy of her blades.

The young girl conjured a portal to the Netherrealm, where she knew Quan Chi would be residing. She had remembered this from the dream she had a few years ago. Skarlet could remember the pale sorcerer conversing with a mysterious man who appeared to be a mirage, as he was surrounded by purple energy.

The hemomancer could also remember that there was a mysterious group of men that had demonic markings on their bodies and held large naginatas in their hands. As they walked towards Quan Chi, they muttered a demonic chant that Skarlet could not understand.

The young girl stepped through the portal, and found herself in the bowels of the Netherrealm. She could hear footsteps nearby, and immediately materialised into blood to avoid being seen. Skarlet could see that the same cult she saw in her dream were approaching. They were muttering the same chant that they were in the dream; nothing about them had changed from her premonition a few years ago.

Once they had disappeared from view, as they had walked into another part of the Netherrealm, Skarlet followed them. She was hoping that they would be approaching Quan Chi, like they had done in their dreams. Skarlet could see that they had indeed been approaching Quan Chi, who was standing next to somebody familiar.

The somebody who had trained her last year.

Skarlet scowled. _How could he? He sides with Quan Chi, yet agrees to train me at Shao Kahn's request?! What is this?!_

The man was no longer an ally; he was now an enemy. But when Skarlet thought about it, Scorpion was never an ally. The hemomancer had not quite forgiven him about not being able to help her, even though he couldn't. However, by how things appeared, there was no confinement spell on Scorpion when she was being claimed by Rain. He looked normal, as though no spell had been placed on him. Scorpion had _lied _to her.

She knew that the Netherrealm spectre couldn't be trusted. There was this air about him that made the demon mysterious, as though he had ulterior motives. Skarlet felt this sense of discomfort when he was near her. She had no idea how she had gotten through an entire year of training with the demon.

However, he was friendlier then. She didn't know what was with him. Surely, Scorpion was never like that. It was as though somebody had disguised as him and tried to have her warm up to him, and eventually, he would throw it back in her face.

Pushing her thoughts aside, Skarlet resumed her focus on her current mission. The pale demon was standing in front of the cult members, and inbetween Scorpion and the mysterious man. From what she could hear, they were discussing their plans for the tournament, which was only a year away.

Most of the plans brought up by Quan Chi and his comrades were unfamiliar news to Skarlet. Scorpion brought up his revenge against Sub-Zero, and that he would be helping a woman get revenge against Shang Tsung. Skarlet had heard the demon say that the woman's name was Carnala.

_Carnala_.

That woman's name was familiar to Skarlet. Wasn't that the person from which Skarlet had been created? Shang Tsung had told Skarlet about her origins; that she had been created by him through infusing the blood of a fellow hemomancer named Carnala, who was the first hemomancer and therefor, Skarlet's ancestor. Infusing Carnala's blood with sorcery, Shang Tsung had created Skarlet.

But using the late Edenian woman's blood to create Skarlet and unforeseen consequences. Carnala's soul had somehow find Skarlet's body and attempted to live through her, but Shang Tsung had remedied it through an exorcism.

So how was Carnala still alive?

Unless…

_Oh shit_, Skarlet thought. She had realized that Carnala had probably found another human to live through, and then struck a deal with Scorpion about getting revenge from Shang Tsung. Those souls, as well as his blood, would make Carnala invincible. The hemomancer took it upon herself to defeat her ancestor when the time came.

Having found out more necessary information, Skarlet teleported back to Outworld and decided to immediately inform Shang Tsung of what she had discovered in the Netherrealm. Politely requesting the sorcerer to have a private word, Skarlet told him what she had found.

"Whilst I was in the Netherrealm, Shang Tsung, I found out that Carnala is still alive," she began.

The sorcerer was puzzled. How could she be alive? He had banished the soul of the first hemomancer from Skarlet's body. How could she…

_Shit_.

"She has found herself another human to reside in," Shang Tsung concluded.

"Yes. And she is plotting with Scorpion to get revenge on you. I overheard Scorpion telling Quan Chi of his plans during the tournament whilst I was in the Netherrealm. I know that I will have to get some answers out of him during the tournament to complete my mission given to me by the Emperor."

Shang Tsung scowled. "Thankyou, Skarlet. I must be wary of those two during the tournament. You must try your best to keep Sub-Zero alive. I am using the Lin Kuei to assassinate Earthrealm warriors. He is among them, and if Scorpion kills him, our chances of claiming Earthrealm are slim. I know that Quan Chi will probably stop you in doing so, but I need you to do your best."

Skarlet nodded. She felt as though missions were piling up on her. There was this mission to assassinate Quan Chi, another to get information from Scorpion, another to get Sub-Zero safe, and then to get revenge on Rain.

Okay, some of them weren't necessary. But to Skarlet, they were. The hemomancer then teleported away to her quarters to get some sleep.

* * *

_**First Month of Training**_

Skarlet's final year of training had commenced. She would be training with Kano, who would be teaching her strength and force. The hemomancer had been taught attack by Kitana. That topic would hopefully be a basis in strength and force.

Heading to Shang Tsung's Gardens, Skarlet could see Kano twirling his knives. The Black Dragon thug looked at the girl and nodded. "So, yer must be Skarlet. Ma name's Kano. Shao Kahn's instructed me ta teach yer in strength 'n force. First, we'll start off in strength.

"I take it that Kitana's taught yer in attack? She told me so, anyway." Skarlet nodded, and Kano continued talking, "We'll start off in strength. As for yer first lesson, Skarlet, we'll start in a dojo in Lei Chen that Shao Kahn lent to me for our training."

"How are we to get there?"

Shit. Kano hadn't even considered that. Despite this, he knew that Skarlet had the ability to teleport, so that would be how they were to get there.

"Can yer teleport us there, Skarlet?"

The hemomancer nodded before grabbing Kano by the arm and teleporting, taking him with her. They found themselves in Lei Chen, at the dojo Kano had been telling Skarlet about before.

The dojo was heavily decorated in equipment; there was a lot of punching bags, weights, medicine balls, and a boxing ring. Skarlet knew that by the end of the year, her strength would have improved.

The floor of the dojo was wood and overlooked the sea. It was brown in colour with dragon symbols on the walls, which were a cream colour. The dragons were black, to create contrast with the light-coloured walls.

The hemomancer eyed the gym with awe. "Kano, what's the difference between strength and force?"

"Strength is the physical power and energy you'll develop from our trainin'. Force is how yer use that strength."

Skarlet nodded to show that she understood. "Can we begin our training? I'm feeling rather energetic."

The Black Dragon thug chuckled heartily. "Yer, why not? First we'll start off in teaching yer how ta box." He put on some Thai pads, and threw Skarlet a pair of gloves, which the hemomancer would be using to punch.

Gesturing to her left arm, Kano spoke, "That arm is what yer use to jab. Yer right arm is what yer use to cross. And to do the cross, yer hook yer left arm around. Like this."

Kano threw his left arm out and hooked it, making it look as though his arm was in an 'L' shape. Skarlet nodded to show that she understood. "With what I've just taught yer, I'd like yer to practice those three punches on me."

Skarlet did as she was told; the hemomancer throw a jab, followed by a hook and a cross. As she punched, Kano remembered that there was something that he needed to teach her.

"Shit! I forgot somethin'. When yer punch, Skarlet, one hand needs to go back to yer chin. Like this."

Kano threw a jab, and kept his right hand at his chin. He then threw a cross and immediately retracted his jabbing hand, putting it at his chin. "Yer guard is important because if yer miss a punch, yer can be set up for a free hit.

"With what I've taught yer, I'd like yer to show me yer guard."

Skarlet got into her guard position, and Kano began punching. Though his punches hurt, Skarlet brushed the pain aside, as she was able to guard herself from every hit. Kano was impressed with both her and him. He was impressed with her for being a quick learner, and he was impressed with himself for being a good teacher.

"Brilliant work, Skarlet! Now, let's do some leg work. I'll start off by teaching yer what a check is. It's like a guard, except it's using yer leg to block incoming kicks. Sound simple enough?"

The hemomancer nodded.

"To check, yer lift yer leg up and point your foot as if yer a ballet dancer. There can be a low check, or a high check. High checks are when yer connect yer knee with yer elbow. Like this."

Kano lifted up his right leg and arched his foot, pointing it at the floor. He then connected his knee with his elbow. It looked painful to Skarlet, but she would get through it.

The hemomancer nodded to show that she understood.

"Now, I'll teach yer some kicks. There's a switch-kick and also a right kick. Switch-kicks are always done with yer left leg. Like this."

Kano then switched his legs and kicked with his left leg, his pivot allowing him to rotate the kick. He then got back into his stance and kicked with his right leg. In said kick, his pivot was greater than it was in his left leg.

_If Kano can do it, then so can I_, Skarlet thought.

"Can yer do those kicks for me, Skarlet?"

She did as asked. Skarlet started off with a right kick. Kano was impressed with her expert pivot and her technique. It was her switch-kick that she would need to work on. The Black Dragon knew that she probably wasn't left-handed, which would make switch-kicks difficult for the hemomancer.

"Good work on yer right kicks, but yer need to work on your technique with the switch-kicks. Here, watch me again."

Kano demonstrated the switch-kick once again, and nodded at Skarlet, a gesture for her to do the switch-kick again. The hemomancer did the switch-kick again, and found that she had actually done it right. Kano applauded her for her good work.

"Alright, now to practice yer checks now that yer have learnt the kicks," Kano informed her. Skarlet nodded and got into her check stance. The Black Dragon spoke again, "I'm going to kick yer, and you're going to do yer check. Then yer going to kick me. Got it?"

The hemomancer nodded to show that she understood. Kano did a right kick, which connected with Skarlet's suspended leg. The red assassin kicked Kano in the leg he was standing on. They then continued like this, alternating between switch-kicks and right kicks, and high-check and low-check, as well as who was checking and who was kicking.

For the rest of the lesson, Skarlet practiced what she had learnt on a punching bag. She could feel herself getting stronger with each punch and kick. Over the next five months, Skarlet would be practicing her boxing techniques, as well as skipping and other strengthening exercises.

* * *

_**Last Day of Training**_

Finally. The last day of training had come. Skarlet had gotten much stronger over the months. She really wanted to get this training session over and done with so that she could embark on her missions given to her by Shang Tsung and the Emperor.

The hemomancer did not know what the purpose of the tournament was for, besides that it could allow merging of realms. But there had to be more to it than that. With all the talk that went on about the tournament, there truly had to be more important stuff to it. Skarlet didn't know what that 'stuff' was, but she was going to find out.

Teleporting to Kano's dojo, Skarlet saw Kano there. He was wearing a black karate gi, with white kanji on it. The kanji on his clothing meant _warrior_.

Skarlet bowed to Kano as she saw him, and her master mirrored the action. The hemomancer was given boxing gloves as well as leg pads. Putting said items on, Skarlet eagerly stepped into the ring.

"Alright, Skarlet. Your final day of training has come. To pass today's lesson, yer must be able to fight me for an hour straight. If yer pass out or for some reason, aren't able ta fight anymore, yer fail. Yer time starts now."

Before Skarlet could address her feelings, she found herself lunging at Kano with brutal punches and kicks. Her speed was like that of a cheetah. The Black Dragon thug could get very few punches in, as she was too fast for him.

An hour had quickly passed, and Skarlet had defeated her master. He was beaten and bloody from her brutality, but that was part of the exam. It wasn't as though she didn't _have to _do it. It was a matter of defeating her master to pass her exam.

Healing Kano with her sorcery, Skarlet took her and Kano back to Shao Kahn's Fortress.

It was done. Her missions could now begin.

* * *

**-Woot woot! No more training chapters! **

**-Now I can get on to the real storyline.**

**-I know I didn't do too great of a job with Kano's accent. But I tried.**


	10. Meeting Him

With her training complete, Skarlet had now become an assassin. She was given a supper dedicated to her and two friends of her choice. The red assassin chose Kitana and Jade to go with her, as they were her closest and only friends.

In a few months, the tournament would commence. Skarlet was counting down the days until then, as it was during the tournament that she would be able to begin her mission. However, she was dreading the fact that she would have to protect this 'Sub-Zero', whom she had never met before.

The hemomancer carefully ate her supper. Never had she seen so much food in her life! The food cooked for the three shinobis was greater in quantity than that of the breakfasts that had been cooked for her. There were noodles, a whole chicken, roast beef, pork sausages, rabbit, and bread. Though there wasn't much variety, the quality of said foods could feed the trio for at least three months. But that was mostly because they weren't very big eaters. They couldn't be, anyway, as they needed to stay in shape. The shinobis couldn't be overweight.

Shortly after eating, Skarlet headed up to her room to get further in a book she had rented from the Outworld library. Kitana and Jade had been educating her when she wasn't training. That was how the hemomancer learnt to read and write and become independent. Skarlet liked feeling independent, as it made her feel grown up and important.

The book that the hemomancer had rented out was about the history of Outworld's tournaments. She was fascinated with this knowledge about the event that took place every 500 years. The young girl had learnt from the book that Outworld had won the nine consecutive tournaments, and that one more victory would result in Outworld being free to claim Earthrealm.

Earthrealm had been winning until the Great Kung Lao, Earthrealm's champion at the time, was killed by Goro, a four-armed Shokan that represented Outworld. He then became Champion and had kept his title ever since the last tournament. The Shokan was very proud with himself, and hoped that he would be able to keep his tournament after the upcoming tournament.

Skarlet hoped that she would eventually be able to fight in this tournament. Had she not been tasked with hunting down and possibly assassinating Quan Chi, then she would be fighting in the tournament. The only thing that the red assassin would be fighting for in the tournament would be Sub-Zero's life.

Skarlet wanted to meet this Sub-Zero, as she wanted to be sure that she would be protecting somebody who deserved to have their life saved. If he was anything at all like Rain, then she would freely allow him to be killed. But if he was kind to her, then she would handle his life with care.

With the tournament being two months away, Skarlet wanted to find out from Shang Tsung when the Lin Kuei would be coming. The old sorcerer had told her that the Earthrealm clan of assassin would be coming to Outworld sometime prior to the tournament so that they would have enough numbers. Skarlet was glad, as she could not wait to meet him.

Her curiosity got the better of her, as the hemomancer decided to track down Shang Tsung and ask of him what was happening with the Lin Kuei regarding the tournament.

Heading down to the Flesh Pits, where she knew the sorcerer would be, as that was where he did most of his dirty work, Skarlet decided to ask him the question she so desired to know.

"Shang Tsung," the red assassin called, bowing to the aged sorcerer. "Do you know when the Lin Kuei are going to be coming here? You did say something about them coming to Outworld before the tournament, and the tournament is two months away."

Skarlet was well aware that her request was somewhat bold, and hoped that Shang Tsung wouldn't rebuke her or be rude. Skarlet did not mean it to be that way at all, as she simply wanted to the answer to her question so that she could make the decision about Sub-Zero's life, and then go back to bed.

"They are coming this week, dear. In two days time, to be exact. Why do you ask?"

Skarlet was glad that Shang Tsung was rather kind in answering her question, instead of being rude to her like she had imagined him to be. She would now be counting the days until Sub-Zero had arrived in Outworld.

"I just wanted to know, Shang Tsung. I am curious to meet this Sub-Zero. What is he like?"

_No, you were supposed to leave for you to decide! IDIOT!_

"He is quite shy and does not talk a lot. Sub-Zero is very focused on what he does and does not let a lot of distractions get in his way. For that reason alone, he is considered to be one of the top Lin Kuei assassins. It is why he is among the Lin Kuei participating in this tournament. Only elite assassins or clan members from factions are allowed to participate in tournaments."

_Not too bad. Just like me._

"Thank you, Shang Tsung. I will see you tomorrow morning. Goodnight," the hemomancer said in her normal, sincere voice before she teleported away to her quarters and drifted into a deep sleep the moment her head hit her pillow.

* * *

_**Two Days Later**_

Skarlet woke up, bright and early on Thursday morning. She knew that the Lin Kuei warriors would be coming today, and was excited to meet Sub-Zero. From what Shang Tsung had told her, the red assassin gathered that they were very similar. Neither of them were talkative, and they only focused on what they had to do. They did not let things on the side get in their way.

Skarlet wasn't very hungry this morning, so she only had some blood for breakfast. The blood was very filling, however, and provided Skarlet with all the nutrients she needed. It also energized her. The hemomancer felt an overwhelming surge of confidence in her as she consumed the blood.

Skarlet then heard masculine voices nearby, and saw that there were three males, each tall and masculine. One wore an outfit that was mostly black and blue. He wore a blue tunic that was attached to his clothes and a black and silver forearm guards, as well as boots of the same colour. His eyes were an icy blue that Skarlet could not stop looking at, and cold breath emitted from his mask.

Another had dark skin and wore a yellow headband with a triangular symbol on it that had an odd 'Y'-shaped letter surrounding it. He wore a black Arabian-esque robe-like outfit with yellow kombat boots and forearm guards of the same colour.

The last Lin Kuei was oriental-looking and seemed to have a relation to Shang Tsung. He had long black hair tied in a ponytail and silver shoulderplates. His arms were decorated with forearm guards and his outfit was similar to the dark-skinned man, the only difference being that the oriental man had a red sash over his outfit and it had red accents. Like his comrades, the red-clad man wore kombat boots.

Following those men was Shang Tsung, who must have gone to get them.

The sorcerer approached the Emperor with the three Lin Kuei at his side. "Emperor, I present to you, the Lin Kuei warriors Cyrax, Sektor and Sub-Zero!"

_So that's who he was. Why didn't I figure that out earlier?_

The hemomancer concluded that the man dressed in blue was Sub-Zero. She loved looking into his ice-blue eyes, as she found herself getting lost in them. The hemomancer wondered what the man looked like if he took off his mask and cowl.

Shang Tsung turned to face Skarlet, and gestured for her to 'come here.' She obeyed, approaching Shang Tsung and Sub-Zero. He turned to look at both warriors before speaking.

"Skarlet has foreseen what is to take place at the tournament. She has heard that Scorpion plots to kill you. I have assigned her to keep you safe during the tournament. She is much more skilled than she looks, Sub-Zero."

Sub-Zero gave Skarlet a once over, and noticed that her well-conditioned body was evidence that the sorcerer was not lying. Sub-Zero liked having a woman at his side, but did not wish to be the one being protected. Sub-Zero knew that it was common amongst men to want to be the one in control, but did not have any qualms about what was to happen. He happened to like the look of Skarlet; the Cryomancer thought that she was quite attractive.

Sub-Zero nodded at Shang Tsung in agreement, and Skarlet smiled at the Lin Kuei elite. "Run along now, you two. You may want to get to know each other. After all, you'll be at each other's side for almost all of the tournament," the sorcerer said with a wink.

Both Sub-Zero and Skarlet smirked before heading deciding to walk around Outworld and tell each other about themselves.

Sub-Zero told Skarlet about his childhood and life in the Lin Kuei. He mentioned that both him and his younger brother were kidnapped by their father, their childhoods stripped away by their father, that his real name was Bi-Han and he commanded the powers of ice and cold, his missions in the Lin Kuei, and the hardships of life as an assassin.

The red assassin felt sorry for Bi-Han about what he had to put up with during his life. The young woman went on to tell him about her creation, how she was assigned to spy on and assassinate Quan Chi, her training, her hatred of Rain and Scorpion, and her hemomancy. There really wasn't much to tell about herself, as she had only being living for eight years, and most of her life had been devoted to training.

By the end of it, Skarlet found that she liked this Sub-Zero. The man made her feel special and appreciated. He was much kinder to her than most men were; him, Kano, Shao Kahn and Shang Tsung were the nicest men to her. The red assassin would be happy to guard Bi-Han during the tournament.

* * *

**-This is the final chapter of Rebellion's pre-story. I just felt that a chapter like this would be important. **

**-Yes, Sub-Zero and Skarlet will be an eventual pairing, except it won't quite be that. **

**-The next chapter will be of Rebellion's actual story. I'm sorry, I did want this chapter to be the start of Rebellion's actual story, but decided to write this instead, as it would be important to their relationship's development. **


	11. Heartbreak

Skarlet had gone to bed that night feeling quite accomplished and giddy. She had gotten herself on good terms with Sub-Zero and was eager for the tournament to commence so that she could be by his side throughout the whole folly. The red assassin had taken quite a liking towards Bi-Han, and loved how he had opened up around her, despite the fact that it was at Shang Tsung's request.

During her slumber, Skarlet had several dreams about the Lin Kuei assassin. The hemomancer dreamt that she was getting married to the Cryomancer, and having a family with him. The red assassin imagined their daughters to look exactly like her, and their sons to look exactly like the blue assassin. She wondered what they would grow up to be like.

Never had it crossed her mind during those dreams about getting with Bi-Han that he may not return those feelings for her. Though she did indeed think that it was possible, as the red assassin caught him giving her a once over. As he did so, Skarlet noticed that his eyes darkened slightly and his breath became laboured, and his voice was husky when he spoke to her. Those were all indicators that he _liked _her.

Skarlet hoped that her feelings were true, as even though she met Bi-Han only once, she loved the Cryomancer with every fibre in her being. It made her wonder to no end as to why she had an instant attraction to the ice-bearer. The red assassin backtracked slightly, remembering that before meeting him, she was extremely curious about him and was pondering whether or not to guard him with her life during the tournament, according to whether or not he was kind. Skarlet had mind up her mind; he was kind to her, so she would do as Shang Tsung said and keep him safe from Scorpion.

The night had quickly become morning, and Skarlet got up. Checking the calendar on the wall of her bedroom, Skarlet saw that the tournament was three weeks away. What was she to do during that time period? Her training was complete, and she wanted to wait until the tournament commenced to begin her mission on Quan Chi.

But there was always the chance to get to know Bi-Han better…

Skarlet could feel her heart quickening at the thought of the Cryomancer. She got out of bed and put on her boots and armour, and left her quarters to spy on the Lin Kuei as he slept. Skarlet wondered what he would look like as he slept. The red assassin imagined the blue-clad man looking very peaceful as he slept, and still gorgeous.

Materialising into blood, Skarlet used her tracking abilities to find Bi-Han. The scent of his crimson fluid was rather strong, so she knew that he was nearby. Skarlet quickly found the Lin Kuei assassin and saw that he was, in fact, sleeping rather peacefully. Better yet, he looked _adorable _in his sleep!

Skarlet felt her heart quicken as she looked at the sleeping Bi-Han. She wanted to materialise into her true form and kiss him on the lips, but knew that she couldn't give off her presence. Skarlet didn't want to scare him off. _Not just yet_, _ehehehehe_.

The hemomancer teleported from the quarters of the Lin Kuei elites into the Throneroom, where she saw nobody else there. Where would they have been? Surely they weren't sleeping. Skarlet couldn't have been the only one awake. At least Shang Tsung or Shao Kahn; one or the other, sometimes both, were awake at this time.

Her train of thought was interrupted as she heard a familiar voice in her head.

_Go back to sleep, Skarlet._

Not recognising who the voice belonged to, the hemomancer immediately grew wary of the fact that she could hear somebody talking to her, yet there was nobody around her. The red assassin unsheathed her swords and held them offensively, "Who's there?!" She growled as she looked around the room. No sign of anyone still.

_I have been watching you, Skarlet. Your training and eagerness to assassinate Quan Chi will serve you well. Your mission given to you by Shao Kahn will eventually set you free of his ways, and then you will be able to start a new life. A life free of Outworld and all it's evil entail, and one with love, joy, and peace. _

Skarlet grew frustrated by the minute. Why was this person talking to her? She did not know what the voice meant, nor did she know where it was coming from. The red assassin did not like this feeling of unknowingness. "Go away!"

_In time, your mission will ally yourself with us, and you will see the truth behind your creation, Skarlet. I will be seeing you, and am looking forward to when you join us. _

With that, the voice then left Skarlet's mind. What did it mean? Joining who? Why was the voice so ecstatic about having Skarlet join it? She returned to her quarters to ponder what had been said to her.

"Your training and eagerness to assassinate Quan Chi will serve you well…Your mission given to you by Shao Kahn will eventually set you free of his ways…" The assassin spoke softly to herself.

The words continuously replayed in her mind as she tried to break them open and understand what it meant. After what seemed like ages, Skarlet had finally figured out what it meant.

_The voice was telling me that I am going to eventually defect from Shao Kahn during my mission…But why? Why must I defect? I can't do that. Not now, anyway. NO, SKARLET, YOU CAN'T DEFECT! STOP THINKING LIKE THAT! _

The hemomancer mentally screamed at herself for what she was thinking. She frowned at what she was thinking, but found herself brushing off the thoughts once again. The red assassin wanted the day of the tournament to come so that she could find out more about her possible future.

* * *

_**Two Months Later**_

The day from the tournament had finally come, and Skarlet was anticipating it's events. She continuously had dreams about her 'new life' in a place that she did not know the name of. It was a foreign realm that she had not yet been to.

Skarlet and Bi-Han stood in the Courtyard, where the tournament would be taking place. She desperately wanted to 'play' with him, but knew that such activities would have to wait.

The two shinobis saw several people emerge from the doors of the Courtyard. An average height man wearing a straw hat with white eyes, a shirtless Asian man that had black karate pants on with black kombat boots and forearm guards, a military dressed blonde-haired woman, a man wearing a tuxedo and shades, and several other people came forth. They stood around the Courtyard, somewhat evenly distributed.

The other Lin Kuei warriors came forth, as did Jade, Kitana, Kano, Baraka, Tanya, Rain, Scorpion, Shang Tsung and Quan Chi. The aged sorcerer levitated over to his Throne, which was behind some kind of walkway that seemed very tight. In the walkway were hundreds of monk students were dressed in white robes with an orange sash.

Everybody fell silent when they heard Shang Tsung speak.

"Kombatants…I am Shang Tsung! In the coming days, each of you will fight. Some are here of their own volition; others were brought here by chance. You participate in the most important Mortal Kombat in history! The tenth, after nine Outworld victories, will determine Outworld's fate. If you defeat all of your opponents, you will face one final challenge…me."

A smirk could be heard from the crowd, "Ha. That old geezer's the final challenge? They might as well give me the belt right now." There was an eerie silence, "Wait, they do have belts right?"

The military woman who he had been standing next to and clumsily hitting on coughed. His heart skipped a beat when he saw the old sorcerer standing next to him. "Appearances can be deceiving, Mr Cage," Shang Tsung said, referring to his decrepit appearance. The sorcerer levitated back to his Throne, and spoke as he did so.

For his disrespect, Shang Tsung decided to make Mr Cage the first kombatant of the tournament. He had the actor fight Reptile and Baraka, both of which the actor defeated. Almost everyone, even Johnny Cage, was surprised at his performance.

A day had passed, and things were just getting started. Scorpion showed up of his own volition, emerging from the ground with a burst of flame. The spectre continuously demanded to fight Sub-Zero.

He faced Kung Lao, Nightwolf, Cyrax and Sektor. All of which the demon easily defeated. After each fight, Scorpion demanded to face Sub-Zero.

Shang Tsung could feel his anxiety rising each time the demon demanded to face Sub-Zero. Skarlet and Sub-Zero got nervous each time, and the Cryomancer's life felt as though it was fading away with each demand.

The tournament had relocated to Shang Tsung's Throneroom, where Sub-Zero decided to allow Scorpion to fight him in order to shut the demon up. Scorpion tried to bring Sub-Zero into the Netherrealm to fight, but Skarlet intervened.

"No! You can't kill him!" She screamed, her voice shaky and frightened. Bi-Han looked at her with sad eyes, as did Shang Tsung. "She's right. You cannot fight in the Netherrealm. Fighting must take place where the tournament does."

The spectre seemed determined to let nothing get in his way of avenging his family and clan. "Watch us," Scorpion spat before teleporting him and Sub-Zero to the Netherrealm.

Skarlet started to cry, as she had failed her mission. She looked at Shang Tsung, expecting the worse, but the sorcerer nodded at her. He knew that she did try her best to protect him, but one of the tournament rules were that nobody could intervene in a fight. And if Skarlet were to do so and save Sub-Zero, she would be punished by Shao Kahn.

* * *

-Rebellion-

* * *

Scorpion returned from the Netherrealm without Sub-Zero. However, he had come back with a prize. Holding up the remains of Sub-Zero, a spine and skull attached to it, the spectre dropped it onto the ground. With a loud scream, Scorpion teleported away.

Skarlet could not bring herself to look at Bi-Han's remains, as she knew that she would only cry harder. The hemomancer wished that he would come back to life somehow.

The tournament progressed, but Skarlet wasn't there to witness the outcome. She was in the Netherrealm, spying on Quan Chi and Scorpion. The hemomancer hated Scorpion more than ever, and had added him to her hitlist. Skarlet could not look at him without remembering the demon dropping the spine of Sub-Zero on the ground without remorse.

The red assassin could see that Scorpion was speaking with Quan Chi about what had recently transpired in the tournament.

"Did you kill him?"

"Yes. I burnt him alive and tore out his spine and skull. I returned to the tournament grounds and showed my prize to everyone there. His little bitch girl was crying over it."

"Shao Kahn's newest creation. She was once your student, yes?"

The spectre nodded. "Indeed. She is a remarkable warrior, no doubt, but it is obvious that she only cares for herself and that damned Cryomancer!"

Quan Chi chuckled. "Calm down, Scorpion. When we take the Emperor down, and take over his precious Outworld, she will be ours. No doubt."

That was all Skarlet needed to be sure that she could assassinate Quan Chi.

* * *

**-I think you now know what I meant by 'It won't be quite a Sub-Zero/Skarlet pairing.'**

**-Who do you think the voice belonged to?**


	12. Reunion

Having lost in the tenth tournament due to Liu Kang defeating Goro and Shang Tsung, the Outworld heroes left in a portal to Shao Kahn's Fortress, whilst the Earthrealm heroes stayed behind to celebrate. Skarlet was still in the Netherrealm, hunting down Quan Chi and Scorpion. Both of them deserved to suffer her wrath. Scorpion had proclaimed his jealousy of the fact that he only cared about Sub-Zero, whilst Quan Chi said in response told the fellow demon that 'she would be theirs.' Skarlet knew that as a matter of fact, she belonged to nobody but Sub-Zero. And the hemomancer was sure of that.

Quan Chi had teleported away, claiming that he had 'work' to do. Scorpion nodded and was about to leave, when the red assassin emerged from her hiding spot, and aggressively pounced on him. The yellow-clad demon fell to the ground head first, wincing in pain. Skarlet's eyes depicted pure rage and hatred.

"Why…" she growled. "Why! Why did you have to kill him!" As the hemomancer spoke, she postured up and began to punch Scorpion in the face. Her punches were strong and swift and Scorpion felt rather weak. The spectre knew that Skarlet's strength caused Scorpion's face to bleed with each punch, and her hands were absorbing his blood, making him weak.

"T-To get…revenge," Scorpion coughed. Skarlet's eyes became blood-red with anger and hatred. Those emotions had increased tenfold when Scorpion told her why he had killed Bi-Han.

"You're pathetic! Bi-Han did nothing wrong!" Skarlet slapped Scorpion in the face, making the demon's head toss. "I hate you! You're a gutless bastard!"

The spectre managed to push a now crying Skarlet off of him. Glaring at the hemomancer, Scorpion spoke again, "You know nothing of what happened, little girl. I would advise you to stay out of this. My business with your lover has nothing to do with you, so just get the hell out of my sight."

Skarlet was growing more furious with each word the demon breathed. Unsheathing her swords, the red assassin looked at her former master with the intent to kill. "I heard _everything_. Everything you said to your master about me. I can tell you now, Scorpion, that I will never be yours! Nor will I allow myself to be handled by that pale bastard you call your master!"

Her rant seemed to have taken a lot of energy from her, so Skarlet took a deep breath before speaking again. "He's got you wrapped around his finger…I wouldn't be surprised if you were his personal bitch. You believe everything he says, Scorpion. I'm disgusted with that. You're supposed to be a man of honour! Killing somebody over a lie is not honourable!"

_Oh shit. I've said too much_.

The demon looked at Skarlet, with anger in his eyes. He was fed up with everybody telling him that the Lin Kuei weren't responsible for the death of his family. The yellow-clad shinobi growled at her, "Sub-Zero and the Lin Kuei are responsible for the deaths of MY FAMILY! YOU KNOW NOTHING OF WHAT TOOK PLACE! I ended his life in revenge for what he did to me! And that is that! Nobody knows what really happened, EXCEPT ME!"

Skarlet looked down and shook her head. "You lie…" She then inclined her head to face him, "What is it that you want from me? Why are you so mad that I care for that Cryomancer so much?"

"Your body and blood belong to _me_…not that pathetic Cryomancer that you love! Once Quan Chi and I have taken over Outworld, you'll be ours to share. And there's nothing you can do about it. Nothing at all. I'll have you know that I allowed Rain to claim you. I wanted to know what you were like in bed. And since I took the liberty to watch you be claimed by that Hydromancer, I know what you're like in the bedroom." And with that, he laughed evilly.

Skarlet had truly had enough with Scorpion. Stabbing herself with her knives, the red assassin threw a blood ball at the demon. Though the yellow shinobi was rather fast in kombat, the projectile Skarlet had thrown at him was too fast for him to dodge. It hit the demon, knocking him to the ground. Skarlet used this opportunity to grab the spectre by the neck and brutally bash his neck against the floor.

The momentum she felt whilst brutalising her lover's killer made Skarlet feel as though she could do anything. The red assassin continued to brutalise him with punches, kicks, slashes, and stabs. Scorpion could not fight back, as Skarlet was too fast and too strong.

The hemomancer's assault was cut short when she heard a familiar voice behind her.

"Skarlet, stop. His life is a matter I will take into my own hands. Allow me."

The red assassin turned around to see who the voice was coming from. Though the voice was familiar, the person speaking wasn't. The voice belonged to a demonic looking creature, clad in black. He had white eyes that depicted pain and heartbreak.

Skarlet had to give the demon a few once overs to recognise who it was. "Bi-Han?" The red assassin's eyes started to tear up again as she melted into the wraith's arms. "But how?"

"Quan Chi brought me back to life with his sorcery. I am but a shadow of my former self, bound to the sorcerer. I need your help to remove myself from his bonds. And then, we can be together. We can escape this tournament madness. Please, Skarlet?"

The hemomancer wanted to enjoy his words, but she knew that this wasn't the Bi-Han that she quite knew before. Nonetheless, her feelings for him were still alive, and she wanted nothing more than to be with him. "Okay," she said, tears pouring from her eyes. Bi-Han smiled and gently kissed her forehead. "I will do my best to help you on your quest. As much as I want to kill Scorpion, we have to help him. Quan Chi's bond is making him blind as to who is his friend or foe."

Skarlet nodded. "I love you, Bi-Han."

The black wraith kissed her again, this time on the lips. It felt good to know that she reciprocated his feelings, even though he had known that she did whilst he was still a human. "I love you too, Skarlet."

* * *

_Outworld_

Whilst Skarlet and Noob Saibot were conversing in the Netherrealm, Scorpion decided to teleport to Outworld. He had remembered his mission, which was to help Carnala extract revenge on the sorcerer for how he had wronged her many millennia ago.

Having rendezvoused with the undead hemomancer, Scorpion was given the instruction to knock Shang Tsung unconscious and bring him to Carnala. The demon did as asked, and teleported himself to Shang Tsung's chamber, where the sorcerer was sleeping soundly.

Grabbing a book from a shelf nearby, Scorpion brought it over the old sorcerer's head. The spectre smashed the novel repeatedly over the soul-consumer's head, knocking him unconscious. His mission half-complete, Scorpion grabbed Shang Tsung's body and brought him to Carnala.

The hemomancer woman was more than pleased with his efforts. "Put him down," she requested. Scorpion obeyed, eager to see what she would do. Carnala grabbed the sorcerer by the throat and teleported away, to some place unknown.

The psychotic woman had taken Shang Tsung to the Flesh Pits, with the intent to kill him.

* * *

**-Skarlet doesn't know the full story of what happened between the Lin Kuei and Shirai Ryu, but she knows that Bi-Han didn't do it.**

**-There is a sappy moment between Skarlet and Noob Saibot. And because of that, my fanfic is crap! Nah idk.**

**-Do you think Shang Tsung will be killed by Carnala? Or will something go wrong?  
-Off to work on chapter eight of the Aftermath. Adios. **


	13. A New Mission

Carnala took Shang Tsung to the Flesh Pits, having teleported him there from the sorcerer's bedroom. The hemomancer was about to fulfil her sick fantasy, which was having Shang Tsung hoisted above her own her blood pillars, and slashing at his chest, leaving a massive slit from which the sorcerer's blood and guts would pour out and onto Carnala's face…

The first hemomancer was excited to have all the power from Shang Tsung, as the sorcerer was exceptionally strong. He was able to drain the souls of others and shapeshift into people at will. The aged sorcerer was also associated with fire, and with that ability at his command, Shang Tsung could shoot barrages of flaming skulls at people, from his hands and from the ground. Now that he had been revitalised with souls, Shang Tsung's powers were much stronger.

Just as Carnala was about to fulfil her darkest desire, Shang Tsung had come to his senses and snapped his eyes wide open to see that he was no longer in his bedroom, but rather in the Flesh Pits. How he got there, he could not remember. But that didn't matter, as his main focus would be getting out of there and going back to sleep.

Seeing that Carnala was there, Shang Tsung glowered at there and assumed her to be the one who brought him out of his bed and into this place. How could he have not noticed what was going on during his slumber? He remembered feeling something hard being bashed against the back of his head, and that was it. The deepness of his sleep increased tenfold after that attack.

Standing up, the sorcerer shot a flaming skull at Carnala, sending the hemomancer back. She hit a table and winced in pain. "Why am I here, Carnala?!" Shang Tsung's voice was as hard as steel as he spoke to Carnala. He was sure that she was going to kill him, but couldn't make any assumptions _yet_.

His words cut through her like a knife, and his body language and tough-as-nails gaze made Carnala too afraid to speak. "I…I-I…" The hemomancer couldn't even start or finish what she was about to say.

Shang Tsung chuckled, "You're pathetic, you know that? It's honestly a no-brainer as to why I killed you in the first place." And with that, the sorcerer consumed his ex-lover's soul. A scream echoed throughout the room that Shang Tsung ignored as he laughed and returned to his quarters. With Carnala's soul in him, the sorcerer felt even more powerful than before. The power in him was so great that he found it hard to sleep.

* * *

_Outworld Wastelands_

Two Lin Kuei warriors, Smoke and Tundra, stood on what remained of Edenia as they conversed their plans for the tournament that would be taking place as they spoke. Shang Tsung had proposed an idea of a new tournament to the Emperor, who agreed. The tournament, like the previous one, would decide Earthrealm's fate once again. Both parties had a fifty-fifty chance of winning.

Smoke had long grey hair and wore a ninja mask of the same colour. His armour, forearm guards and kombat boots were grey, as well as his tunic. His bodysuit was black and he had a masculine body. Tomas had smoke emitting from his body, hence his codename. The grey-clad Lin Kuei warrior was an Enenra; a being composed of smoke and vapour. This granted him teleportation and the ability to use smoke as a direct projectile. He was also able to turn invisible.

The man standing next to him was Tundra, Sub-Zero's younger brother and successor. He had entered the tournament with Smoke to avenge Bi-Han, and go to whatever length to do it. Tundra wore a black cowl with a blue ninja mask. His bodysuit was a dark blue and over it, he wore a blue ninja garb with the Lin Kuei symbol on it. Tundra wore armour all over his arms and on his kombat boots was the same armour. Around his chest was a belt-like object, also armour.

"We must stay together Tundra," Smoke began, "Assuming your brother's identity will certainly draw attention. Not all of it welcome."

Tundra nodded, "You are right Smoke, but assuming Bi-Han's identity is the best way to honour him." As the young man spoke, cold air emitted from his mouth. This was a trait that all Cryomancers shared.

The Enenra smiled; he was proud of his brother's devotion to Bi-Han, "Let us proceed then, Sub-Zero."

Kuai Liang was proud of being called Sub-Zero, as it made him feel more confident and more grown up. There was a long pause before either of them spoke.

"We should separate," Sub-Zero began. "Our fellow Lin Kuei will not be far behind once our absence is discovered."

"If only they had been forthcoming with your brother's demise. We will find Shang Tsung, and he will tell us all he knows."

"If he killed Bi-Han, he will die…" Sub-Zero trailed. He then faced Smoke, "Be as stealthful as the night," Kuai Liang said as he placed an arm on his chest.

"And as deadly as the dawn," Tomas finished. That was the Lin Kuei's motto. It referred to their stealth tactics whilst on missions.

The two men then parted ways, as they had agreed on doing so before. Little did they know that Reptile had been watching them all this time. With the knowledge that the Lin Kuei were in Outworld and were in the tournament without permission of the Emperor, they would be executed. That in mind, the Saurian headed back to Shao Kahn's Fortress to tell his master what he had witnessed.

* * *

_Shao Kahn's Throneroom_

Reptile had just informed the Emperor of what he had witnessed on the Wastelands of Outworld. Shao Kahn had decided to send Kitana, Jade, and Skarlet to do the job for him whilst he made last minute preparations for the tournament.

"Kitana! Jade! Skarlet!"

The three shinobis made their way to the Emperor. They figured that Shao Kahn had probably assigned them a mission. Skarlet frowned at this, as she had already been assigned a mission before the tournament had even started. But she would not dare question the Emperor.

"The Lin Kuei have entered Outworld and are going to participate in my tournament without permission. I want you to hunt them down and **kill them. Show no mercy**!"

The three girls nodded before leaving the Fortress and parting ways to complete the task given to them by the Emperor.

* * *

**-I never understood why in Mk9, the Emperor wanted to have the Lin Kuei eliminated, but ends up requesting them to pledge their loyalty to him?**

**-The hunt for the Lin Kuei begins next chapter.**

**-Carnala got her ass handed to her. Did you honestly think I'd let an OC kill Shang Tsung?**

**-Chapter 14 and 15 coming soon.**

**-I'd like to thank my friend, CryoManceR, for all the help and ideas he has given me with this story. Have you read his Kold Blooded Kouple series? If you haven't, READ THEM. You cannot miss them. They are brilliant.**

**-Hope you enjoyed this chapter!**


	14. Let Me Break It To You

Having been dispatched by the Emperor on her new mission, Skarlet materialised into blood and began to hunt down the Lin Kuei. She could smell a familiar scent of blood in the air…One that she had smelt before. But it was somewhat different. It smelt younger and therefor, more fresh.

She followed the scent of the blood into the Soul Chamber. The place was eerie. In it, there was a small bridge that people could walk across. Several spikes were around the edge of the bridge, and lava was beneath the bridge that would burn someone to ashes the moment it touched them. Behind the bridge was where the souls were stored, and guarding it was a peculiar creature with tentacles. Around the bridge were Shadow Priests that weren't animate. They just stood there, holding their spears in their hands, watching people enter and exit the Chamber.

Skarlet knew that this was where Ermac had been created. The soul-construct was created by the fusion of unfortunate Edenian souls being fused into one being. When the Emperor had claimed Edenia, he had claimed the souls of the Edenians that he had killed during the conquest. With all the souls that composed his being, Ermac was empowered with the dangerous ability of telekinesis, which was one using their mind to move objects at will.

As the young Lin Kuei continued to venture into the Soul Chamber, he could hear something move. _Well shit. My positions up_, Skarlet thought. "Who's there!" Kuai Liang shouted.

Knowing that hiding was pointless, Skarlet decided to give off her position. Materialising into her true form, the hemomancer stood before Kuai Liang. The Cryomancer was immediately captivated by her beauty. The young man was always around other men in the Lin Kuei, as no women were in the clan. Women were inferior to the Lin Kuei. So, it was nice to see a young, pretty woman for a change.

"What is this!" Sub-Zero shouted at her. "I am not here to fight you."

"Neither am I," Skarlet shot back. "You have a familiar look. Have I seen you before?" The man before her indeed looked familiar. He looked a lot like Bi-Han. They wore similar clothes, and the symbol on Kuai Liang's clothing was on Bi-Han's former uniform.

"I am looking for the killer of my brother, Sub-Zero. Or, as some people know him as, Bi-Han," the young Lin Kuei replied.

_That's why, _Skarlet said to herself. "Yes, indeed. I was allied with him before he died."

_Oh shit. I've said too much again_.

Kuai Liang quirked an eyebrow. "What do you mean? You are the enemy. Why were you associated with my brother?" The younger Cryomancer was unaware that his younger brother had gone to Outworld for the tournament. Bi-Han never got to say goodbye to Kuai Liang before he left with Shang Tsung.

"Your brother and I were great friends," Skarlet said. She looked down, as she knew she was going to cry. The red assassin always felt sad when she spoke of her love, even though he was back to life. "I was assigned to guard him during the tournament."

"Then why did he die? Did you let him die, woman?"

"No, I swear on my life. His enemy, Scorpion, took him into the Netherrealm to fight him. Bi-Han never returned. I couldn't intervene, as I would be breaking tournament rules. It breaks my heart that I couldn't do anything."

Kuai Liang liked how this woman cared a lot about his brother. He had a feeling that they had trysts. Well, he was sort of right about that, as it was only now that Bi-Han had returned to life that Skarlet and Noob Saibot, who Bi-Han had been brought back as, had been having romantic rendezvous at midnight every night.

"So you're saying that Scorpion killed him?"

"Yes. He came back with his 'prize,' which even though I've mentioned it, I'd rather not talk about it. What is your name?"

The young Cryomancer felt curious as to what the 'prize' was that the red woman was referring to. "My name is Kuai Liang. And yours?"

"I'm Skarlet. There is something else that you must know about your brother, Kuai Liang. I don't know how to tell you this without you probably breaking down, but that goes without saying."

Sub-Zero had been hurt many times before, so what could Skarlet do that would be worse? His whole childhood had been stripped away from him, and now that he was an adult, Kuai Liang still didn't have any freedom. The Lin Kuei were hunting him and Smoke down for their rebellion against the clan, as they had run away from the Lin Kuei.

Their reason for their betrayal to the clan was because of the Cyber Initiative. Sektor's father, the Grandmaster, had concluded that cybernetics were the best enhancements for assassins. As such, he had decided to automate the clan, starting with Cyrax and Sektor. Both warriors were willing test subjects, whilst Tomas and Kuai Liang still valued their humanity more than anything. Both men also valued free will a lot.

He sighed, "What happened to Bi-Han?"

Skarlet took a deep breath. "Bi-Han's soul descended into the Netherrealm. He was resurrected by a sorcerer named Quan Chi, who is Scorpion's master. Quan Chi manipulated Scorpion into killing your brother, as he knows that Scorpion will do anything to get revenge. The sorcerer even went as far as creating illusions about your brother conducting a massacre against Scorpion's clan. Your brother is now a wraith called Noob Saibot."

Kuai Liang shook his head. "That's impossible…"

"It's true. I would not lie to you. I see your brother every night, and it pains me to see what he's become. Noob Saibot remembers me, and is still very much your older brother. I promise that I am telling you the truth."

Sub-Zero knew that Skarlet was completely credible in what she was saying. He had had a feeling that Skarlet and Bi-Han had trysts every night, and he was right. The red assassin had even admitted it herself, though she had not used that word specifically.

"I suppose I can trust you, Skarlet, as you know more than anybody else that I have asked. We must go and save Tomas, my fellow Lin Kuei who has come with me."

As soon as Kuai Liang mentioned the clan's name, Skarlet remembered her mission. But she could not bring herself to attack Bi-Han's brother, as she would be doing him wrong. The red assassin loved Bi-Han with all her heart, and therefor would not do anything to harm him.

"Let us go. We must tell him about Bi-Han."

* * *

**-Another short chapter. I'm sorry. **

**-I would hate to be the one to break the news about a relative's death. Wouldn't you? It'd be even worse if you cared for/respected the person you're speaking to/about. **

**-Skarlet's loyalty to the Emperor seems to be faltering. Uh oh!**


	15. Adrenaline

Skarlet and Kuai Liang had left the Soul Chamber in search of Sub-Zero's clan brother, Smoke. The Enenra was most likely being hunted by the Lin Kuei whilst trying to look for Bi-Han's killer. The duo eventually found the Enenra in the Living Forest.

The Living Forest was a peculiar area in Outworld that Skarlet did not like at all. The forest had animate trees that breathed foul breath and would eat people. Unfortunate victims were hanged from the tree branches on brown pieces of rope. The forest smelt horrible, and Skarlet was frightened by it.

Smoke had just defeated Shang Tsung and Reptile, the duo teamed up to fight the Enenra. During the fight, Shang Tsung had disguised himself as Bi-Han to give him the upper hand in the fight. Fortunately, the distraction did nothing for Tomas, who fought Bi-Han just as he would any opponent.

Reptile had disappeared to someplace unknown, whilst Shang Tsung was on the ground, in pain from his defeat at Smoke's hands. The Enenra was very angry at the sorcerer.

"Now answer me," he began, his voice hard. "What do you know of Sub-Zero's death?"

Shang Tsung didn't answer, and instead summoned Sektor. The newly-automated cyborg was invisible as he attacked the grey-haired man, who winced and gasped as he was struck.

Making himself known, Sektor spoke, "You have disobeyed the directive to remain in the Lin Kuei Temple."

Not recognising who the cyborg was, but remembering who the voice belong to, Smoke's slate grey eyes widened in horror. "Sektor?!"

"You will return with us to begin your transformation." Sektor had not changed at all since his transformation. He was still that cruel man that Smoke was bullied by as a child. Smoke's hatred for him had only increased. The Czech man felt no remorse for the cyborg before him. He was surprised that Sektor would do such a stupid thing. But then again, Sektor was always agreeing to the orders of the Grandmaster. He was the Grandmaster's son after all.

"You actually did it…you're a cyborg!"

"We are the Lin Kuei…more stealthful than the night, more deadly than the dawn!"

Sektor then lunged at Smoke with a teleport uppercut, but the Enenra dodged and counted with his own variation of the attack. Disappearing in thin air, Tomas punched his enemy twice. Once in the back and second in the chest.

Sektor shot a missile at Smoke, who cried as he was struck. The Enenra soon regained his footing and shot a smokebomb at the red cyborg, who reappeared in midair. Smoke jumped into the air and violently threw his enemy on the ground below them.

Sektor, who was now getting frustrated, shot a powerful rocket at Smoke. The projectile hit Smoke square in the chest, causing him to clutch his chest in pain. Using this to his advantage, Sektor performed a brutal teleport uppercut, his fist brutally connecting with Smoke's chin, damaging the Enenra's skull. He then followed up with a brutal palm strike to his back.

Smoke felt horrible after Sektor's assault, but knew that this fight truly wasn't over. He had to win against his enemy. Tomas knew that the Lin Kuei wouldn't go down without a fight, so he would put all of his willpower into this fight.

Getting up off the ground, Smoke turned invisible and attacked Sektor with a melee combo. The cyborg couldn't detect his opponent, as there was no light reflection of Smoke. His sensors had gotten a little bit rusty from his fight with the Enenra.

Using his stealth as his advantage, Smoke teleported behind his adversary and delivered a brutal teleport punch to Sektor's stomach. As the red-clad cyborg was about to double over, the Enenra swiftly grabbed him by the waist and delivered a brutal German Suplex, making Sektor land head first on the ground. A satisfying crunch was heard from the attack that Tomas had just landed. The cyborg had tried to get back up, but before he could actually do anything, the Enenra delivered a brutal push kick to Sektor's face.

The red-clad Lin Kuei was down and out, having been knocked unconscious by Smoke's push kick. The vapour demon was pleased with his work, as he chuckled heartily over the unconscious body of Sektor. "I will never submit," he said.

Skarlet and Sub-Zero, who were watching the ordeal take place from behind one of the trees, were surprised by the confidence Smoke displayed. Tomas was normally very timid and did not talk much, due to how he had been bullied about his androgynous facial features and his unusual powers. So it was good to see an ally feel happy.

Just as the Enenra was about to leave, more Lin Kuei cyborgs appeared and attacked Smoke. Electrocuting him as they grabbed him, the vapour demon started to scream in pain. Sub-Zero gasped in fear in fear as he watched, whilst Skarlet wasn't sure of what was going on.

"They must not take him…" Kuai Liang seethed. Skarlet immediately knew what was happening. The cyborgs around the grey-haired man were trying to take him away to the Lin Kuei Temple to be automated. Skarlet took out her four deadly daggers and threw one at each cyborg. The daggers landed in the chest of each Lin Kuei cyborg, causing them to fall to the ground and lose their grip on Smoke.

The Enenra teleported closer to Kuai Liang, who smiled warmly at Tomas. However, their moment of happiness was brief, for the eyes of both men widened in horror when they saw that the cyborgs had gotten back up. They never would have thought that robots of all people would be so resilient.

Skarlet had gotten a massive adrenaline rush watching the fight take place between Sektor and Smoke. The young hemomancer decided to take matters into her own hands and fight the cyborgs that remained. Unsheathing her swords, the red assassin turned to face her allies, "Go! Now! I will meet you at the Koliseum."

Smoke and Sub-Zero left the Forest with haste, leaving Skarlet to tend to the cyborgs before her. In their weakened state, the hemomancer could easily make short work of them. The two men felt guilty, even though it was what the sleek assassin told them to do.

Skarlet flipped forward and delivered a brutal palm strike to one of the cyborgs, damaging their skull. She then followed up with a brutal reverse kick to the cyborg's eye. Her victim doubled over in pain, and the hemomancer decided to take the violence up a notch by throwing the cyborg's corpse into one of the trees.

Incensed by the death of one of their own, the Lin Kuei cyborgs charged at Skarlet, ready to attack her. The hemomancer stayed still as they raced towards her, as she had a plan in mind for them. The cyborgs were so close to landing an attack on the sleek assassin when she suddenly materialised into the ground.

The cyborgs were unable to track the red assassin, as she was nowhere in sight. Skarlet laughed to herself at the stupidity of the cyborgs, and planned her next attack. She would drag them down with her, and use her hands to absorb their blood. The hemomancer decided to do use this method on each of her adversaries, as she would not only be killing them, but also absorbing their blood and strengthening herself. It was like killing two birds with one stone.

Skarlet then carried out her plan. Reaching up through the ground to grab the nearest cyborg by both legs, the hemomancer used her powers to drain it's blood. The blood was black and it made Skarlet feel quite powerful. The other cyborgs had noticed that their comrade was dead, and whilst they were distracted, Skarlet killed the rest of them with ease. She then materialised into her human form and fed their corpses to the trees, who ate them with haste.

With her work done, Skarlet headed into the Koliseum, where she had told Kuai Liang and Tomas to meet her. The young assassin teleported to the arena, as it was quicker. She immediately saw her Lin Kuei allies and approached them.

Noob Saibot was nowhere to be seen, as was Scorpion. Skarlet figured that they hadn't been summoned, or they hadn't decided to participate in this tournament yet.

"That man sitting on his Throne is Shao Kahn. Next to him on the left are Shang Tsung and Quan Chi. Shang Tsung was the man who hired Cyrax, Sektor, and Bi-Han to entire the tournament and assassinate Earthrealm warriors. Quan Chi is Scorpion's master, and controls every single fucking thing that he does. I hate it.

"If you want to fight Scorpion, you must demand it of the Emperor. But it won't be easy. Shao Kahn does not like it when people make demands on him, so you might not get to fight Scorpion. You must also know that Scorpion is fearsome, in both battle and looks. I wish I could help you, Kuai Liang, but I cannot. It is the rules of the tournament. Shao Kahn will surely kill me if I do."

Kuai Liang took in everything Skarlet had told him. But he wasn't scared of either Shao Kahn or Scorpion. Sub-Zero was angry. He wouldn't let anything get in his way. He would surely destroy Scorpion and avenge his brother to honour him. Taking a deep breath, the Cryomancer approached Shao Kahn to make his request.

"Shao Kahn, I challenge Scorpion, the murder of my brother! You will bring him before me…" Sub-Zero's voice travels as he points a finger at the warlord. There is a silence after Kuai Liang speaks, but it is abruptly broken when Shang Tsung jumps down Sub-Zero's throat.

"No one makes demands of the Emperor!" Shang Tsung barks. The sorcerer then inclines his head to face Reptile, "You will face Reptile!"

The green abomination walks away from the Emperor's side and faces Kuai Liang, his opponent. Sub-Zero scowls at Reptile, his eyes hard. The young Cryomancer grows angry with his plan being thrown out of proportion, as all he wanted to do in this tournament was to kill Scorpion and continue being on the run from the Lin Kuei with Smoke, and possibly Skarlet. The hemomancer has been a great friend to him so far. Though Kuai Liang indeed thinks that the red assassin is charming, he knows that she is in a relationship with his brother. _What a lucky man_, the Cryomancer thinks to himself.

Smoke, on the other hand, has his eyes set on the blue-clad Edenian Princess who stands next to Shao Kahn. He had defeated her upon arriving in Outworld, but even so, had taken a liking to the azure-clad woman. Kitana was in excellent shape and Smoke liked how her stomach was chiseled and strong, among other things. The Enenra liked the Princess that much that he even felt guilty for defeating her.

Kuai Liang and Reptile begin their fight upon a shout from Shao Kahn. The Cryomancer slides on a trail of ice, knocking the abomination to the ground. Reptile regains his footing and attacks with a slide of his own on a trail of acid, and scissor kicks the airborne Kuai Liang.

As the duo fight, Quan Chi summons Scorpion to the Koliseum. The yellow-clad demon immediately recognises one of the warriors fighting as Sub-Zero. _Impossible_, he thinks. _I killed you. You're a wraith now_.

Kuai Liang continued his assault on Reptile. The Cryomancer flashfroze himself just in time, as Reptile was about to uppercut him. Sub-Zero created a Kori Sword and slashed at the abomination. Green blood spilt from the wounds.

The young Lin Kuei renegade was surprised that the Saurian's attacks were rather weak. Reptile looked quite strong, but this apparently wasn't the case. It was only a matter of time before Kuai Liang defeated his opponent.

"FINISH HIM!" Shao Kahn roared.

Kuai Liang looked at his grounded opponent, who was writhing around in pain. Scorpion also awaited the young man's actions. Sub-Zero eventually decided that Reptile was not worth killing, as his participation in the tournament did not mean killing everyone he fought.

"I would kill you, but that is not my purpose here," Kuai Liang coldly remarked before turning to Shao Kahn and speaking again. "Your followers hold you in high esteem, warlord. They fight and die for _your_ amusement. My brother participated in this folley. I do so only to face his killer!"

Scorpion could see that the young Lin Kuei before him was not Bi-Han. The spectre was rather proud of Sub-Zero not being like his brother, who even though he had become kinder in death, was not honourable in his life. Bi-Han often killed for the sake of it, and was a part of a vile band of assassins. Though Kuai Liang was once a part of the Lin Kuei, he had compassion for people and respected human life, whereas his brother had not. Scorpion decided to be Kuai Liang's guardian instead of his enemy, to atone for his actions.

Shao Kahn leered at Sub-Zero. "And you shall."

Scorpion stepped down from the Throne and faced Kuai Liang. Skarlet was right; the demon looked every bit fearsome. But Sub-Zero was not scared.

He was angry.

* * *

**-Yes, Scorpion does decide to become Kuai Liang's guardian. That is what happens in the original MK2. So Scorpion isn't the bad guy anymore is he? **

**-Gosh, I just realised that I've made this remastered Rebellion six more chapters than the original. **

**-The lemon scene between Noob Saibot/Skarlet approaches. On that note, Noob Saibot meets Smoke and Sub-Zero next chapter. I'm assuming that's being rather anticipated?**

**-I am also very grateful for all the reviews that I have gotten. You guys rock! **


	16. Atonement

The demon approached Sub-Zero at Shao Kahn's command. Scorpion stood before the young Cryomancer. The spectre did not want to fight the young man; Hanzo instead wanted to become Sub-Zero's guardian in atonement for his actions. Scorpion would do this no matter what resistance Kuai Liang put up.

Skarlet was indeed right; Scorpion looked rather fearsome. But Kuai Liang was not afraid. He was angry. Sub-Zero's blue eyes glared daggers at the demon before him. Kuai Liang would be more than happy to defeat the demon and kill him, no matter what. In the back of Sub-Zero's mind, he hoped that the Lin Kuei wouldn't intervene. Kuai Liang wanted revenge and he wanted it _now_.

"You will pay for what you have done to my brother!" Sub-Zero barked. His voice was hard and his words pierced through Scorpion like a bullet. It was as though Kuai Liang's voice was laced with steel, which would explain the hardness of his voice. The young man was angry more than anything, and would do anything to honour Bi-Han. Even if it meant putting blood on his soul and possibly suffering the same fate as his brother.

Scorpion did not say anything, but instead took his combat stance and prepared himself to fight. The demon could not find it in himself to harm Sub-Zero, as it would only make matters worse, and Hanzo wanted to be Kuai Liang's bodyguard. He couldn't harm the young Cryomancer if that was what he wanted.

"BEGIN!" Shao Kahn barked. Sub-Zero charged at his opponent with a slide, knocking the demon to his feet. A satisfying cry in pain could be heard, which increased Sub-Zero's adrenaline. He wanted nothing more than to make Scorpion pay for what he had done to Bi-Han. Scorpion regained his footing and decided to make it seem like a real fight was going on, not some kind of scratch match. He knew that if he just stood there and did nothing, the demon would not be honouring himself. So Scorpion would indeed have to fight back, but do so in such a way that he wouldn't hurt Kuai Liang.

Teleporting behind Sub-Zero, Scorpion connected with a rather gentle punch. He then attacked with a small combo with his swords that went _slash, slash_, _kick_. Kuai Liang soon got up and created his kori sword, and slashed rather frantically at his opponent. The sword attacks caused rips in the demon's clothing and flesh; blood was pouring out, but not profusely. It was in small amounts and Scorpion didn't seem to be in a lot of pain.

Skarlet's grey eyes set sight on the blood pouring from Scorpion's body. She really wanted to intervene and absorb his blood, as the crimson fluid looked rather tasty. The hemomancer hadn't had blood in days, and Skarlet was beginning to crave the fluid, more so than anything. She didn't want Smoke or Sub-Zero to know about her strange appetite, so the young tracker kept her cravings quiet. Bi-Han knew about her hemomancy, but Skarlet didn't have it in her to take his blood. The hemomancer loved him too much to do that.

The fight between the two men raged on. Sub-Zero sent Scorpion staggering back with a brutal right cross to the head. The demon was losing the battle due to his unwillingness of hurting Sub-Zero, as doing so would make the demon's request to be Kuai Liang's guardian seem rather fishy. The young Cryomancer attacked Scorpion with another sword combo, sending the demon to the ground. The spectre was too banged up by Sub-Zero to continue fighting. _Impressive_, Scorpion thought to himself.

Kuai Liang stood triumphantly over Scorpion's body, ready to kill the demon. Sub-Zero started to conjure up an ice blast in order to freeze the spectre in place, and then rip out Hanzo's spine with his head attached. "For my brother!"

But before Kuai Liang could act on his vengeful plans, the Lin Kuei cyborgs appeared around the young man, halting him in his tracks. Sub-Zero knew that they were going to automate him, and hoped that either Smoke or Skarlet would come to his rescue. It would only be fair, as Skarlet had saved Smoke from automation, so Kuai Liang hoped that she would save him too.

"Sub-Zero?! No!" Smoke shouted, his voice reeking despair. Skarlet's hands were snaking down to her kunai, which were strapped to her leg. Her conscience contemplated whether or not she should save Kuai Liang or not.

_You saved Smoke, so it is only fair. Bi-Han would want you to save Kuai Liang. The Emperor would grow angry with your betrayal. _

Going with what her conscience said, Skarlet threw her kunai at the cyberninjas. Each Lin Kuei member went down to the ground. Unlike the solid Lin Kuei warriors in the forest, these ones weren't real. They were apparition-like, and therefor could be killed with ease.

Sub-Zero scurried over to Skarlet and Smoke, who greeted him with a warm smile. Both men that accompanied her were equally happy with her decision to save Kuai Liang. The young tracker could tell that Shao Kahn knew of her defection, but he didn't say anything. He knew that since the young hemomancer had met Bi-Han, Skarlet had fallen in love with him. Love was something that caused loyalty to falter, so the Emperor knew that Skarlet would eventually defect. Thankfully Jade and Kitana hadn't done so.

The Lin Kuei Cyrax and Sektor, who had come with the other Lin Kuei, were trying to make a deal with the Emperor about automating Sub-Zero in exchange for their loyalty. Their deal was cut off when Skarlet rescued the Cryomancer, and for that reason, the two cyberninjas teleported away.

With them gone, Shao Kahn called his daughter over. He had sent her on a mission to hunt down the Lin Kuei and have them leave Outworld with face. Clearly, she had failed, as the Lin Kuei warriors were indeed in Outworld.

Kitana could tell that what her father wanted to speak about wasn't something that would be good, judging by the look of her face. _Oh shit. He must have known that I failed to intercept the Lin Kuei. But who were those warriors speaking to him? They were also Lin Kuei. Why didn't he send them away? I suppose it's because they gave their loyalty to him_.

"Kitana," Shao Kahn began, "How is it that Earthrealm ninjas brazenly appear before me, when my daughter, Princess of Outworld, was sent to intercept them!?" The Emperor's voice was as hard as steel. His voice was the pure depiction of anger and hatred. As he looked at the Princess, Shao Kahn pondered what her punishment would be for failing her mission.

"Father, I-"

"Be gone!" The Princess was harshly cut off by her father's abrupt interruption. She then headed into the Wastelands of Outworld to calm down and gather her thoughts.

From then on, many things happened in the Outworld tournament. Kung Lao was saved from a near-death experience by Liu Kang, who managed to pull the hat-wearing monk away from having his neck snapped by Shao Kahn. Kitana had been saved from execution by Liu Kang, and her and Jade defected from the Emperor. Liu Kang then fought Shao Kahn and bested the Emperor, punching through his chest with a fiery fist. Earthrealm had won the tournament, but the realm still remained in peril.

After the tournament, Skarlet, Kuai Liang and Smoke left the Koliseum and returned to Earthrealm with the other heroes. The hemomancer remembered that she wanted to take them to meet Bi-Han in the Netherrealm.

Skarlet turned to face her two friends, "Kuai Liang, would you like to meet your brother?" The hemomancer's voice sounded rather anxious, as she wasn't sure how she should have worded the question, nor was she sure about how he would react. The young tracker didn't want her ally to become emotional about what she had said.

Kuai Liang looked at Smoke, who nodded, implying that it would be good for the two brothers to reunite. "Yes, Skarlet. Would you like to come too, Tomas?"

The Enenra nodded at the question Kuai Liang just asked him, telling the Cryomancer that he wanted to meet Bi-Han as well. With that, the trio held hands on Skarlet's commands, and the hemomancer teleported them to the Netherrealm, where Bi-Han resided.

They carefully trudged in the cursed lands, and eventually were found by Noob Saibot. The wraith had sensed their presence and teleported to them. The revenant's face changed from an expressionless one to a smile. It was good to see his brother, his lover and an ally all at the same time.

"Brother?" Sub-Zero spoke, dumbfounded. He knew that the wraith before him was in fact Bi-Han, but was unsure for some reason. The revenant walked forward and hugged Kuai Liang and Smoke. The two renegade Lin Kuei were crying tears of joy. Skarlet thought that their brotherly moment was cute.

"What happened to you, Bi-Han? Why are you like this now?" Smoke pondered, having not been told about what had happened. The only thing he knew was that Bi-Han had died. The Enenra didn't know that Scorpion killed him, or that he had descended into Hell for having blood on his soul for killing Scorpion. The blood that tainted his soul was what brought him back as a wraith, but Bi-Han still lived. The former Cryomancer was still very much alive.

"Scorpion killed me during the tournament. A woman named Carnala came and helped him. She used a paralysis spell on me to keep me from moving, and Scorpion burnt me alive and tore out my skull and spine. I descended into the Netherrealm. Quan Chi resurrected me, but the magic he used to make me loyal to him wasn't strong enough. I am still very much the man you grew up with, Tomas."

He turned to face Sub-Zero, "Thankyou for honouring me, Kuai Liang. You have come a long way from being in my shadow to where you are now. I am very proud of you."

"Thankyou, Bi-Han. I am sorry that I failed to kill Scorpion. The Lin Kuei came and subdued me, and in that time, Scorpion escaped. I could tell that he wasn't putting up much of a fight for some reason."

Noob Saibot placed a hand on Kuai Liang and Tomas' shoulders, "Soon I will be free. I am dying to get out of this place. Being back home in Earthrealm outweighs everything. Now, I would like to be alone with Skarlet. There is something I have to talk to her about."

The hemomancer's face turned beet red with embarrassment. She hoped that he wasn't breaking up with her. The young tracker's world would be over if he did. Bi-Han was everything to Skarlet.

Using his magic to open a portal back to Earthrealm, which the two renegade Lin Kuei entered, Noob Saibot turned his attention to Skarlet. The wraith smiled darkly and Skarlet suddenly felt uneasy. He gently grabbed Skarlet's hand and picked her up bridal-style. The hemomancer felt very safe in Bi-Han's arms.

Noob took her to a chamber in the Netherrealm that had a bed. Skarlet immediately knew what they were going to do, and she was glad that he was going to claim her. The hemomancer had been wondering when he would do as such.

Bi-Han gently placed her on the bed and gave Skarlet the dark smile that he had done before. The hemomancer immediately began disrobing. She did not take long, as she wore hardly any clothes. Noob followed suite and was impressed with the young tracker's hastiness when it came to sex.

Both of them liked what they saw. The hemomancer noticed that Noob Saibot had a rather masculine body; his arms and chest were defined. Skarlet's eyes travelled to his erect member, which proudly stood. The wraith's member was bigger than that pindick Rain had.

Skarlet had a well-conditioned body from the training she had undergone in the first nine years of her existence. Her body was clean and shaven, as was the spot inbetween her legs. Noob Saibot wondered how she tasted, and how good she was in bed. But he brushed his thoughts aside as he was going to be able to find out first hand.

Noob took off his mask and leaned forward to kiss Skarlet. Her lips tasted like strawberries and were very sweet. They got their tongues involved and that was when their hands wrapped around the others body. Skarlet's tastebuds went haywire as her red appendage explored Noob Saibot's mouth. He tasted good. As she thought this, the young hemomancer wondered how she tasted.

The red assassin decided to be naughty and grip Noob's appendage. The revenant let out a growl as the hemomancer's hand pumped up and down on the shaft. Her ministrations felt great and the wraith had to suck in orgasms, as he didn't want to stop now. Skarlet grew bold enough to take Noob in her mouth, the black wraith letting out a loud moan. The red assassin's head bobbed up and down on his member; she liked how he tasted.

As Noob was about to spill, Skarlet halted, having sensed Noob's desire to not come yet. The revenant then pressed his lips to her neck and began to nip, suck and lick at the flesh. Skarlet tasted like strawberries and Noob loved how she tasted. The demon continued his ministrations from his neck to her breasts. Noob payed attention to both bosoms, and made sure to not use his teeth. The taste of his lover was making Bi-Han crazy with lust.

He then came down to that special spot in between her legs. Bi-Han kissed her thighs teasingly, his lips getting closer to her entrance with each kiss. Noob could smell her desire and knew that she was ready. The revenant placed his head in front of her navel and kissed it. The hemomancer let out a loud moan and grabbed Noob by the back of the head, holding him in front of her crotch. The wraith lashed his tongue furiously to pleasure his lover. He made sure that Skarlet did not orgasm.

The wraith laid down on the bed and Skarlet used her common sense to lower herself on Noob's member. Both hissed in pleasure from the feeling. The warmth was what made this most enjoyable for Noob, whilst the feeling of having something inside her made it most enjoyable for Skarlet. The hemomancer wanted to feel good and she wanted to feel it now.

The two lovers began to thrust in sync. Noob pounded relentlessly in and out of his Skarlet and enjoyed every second of it. The room was filled with screams, moans, and growls of ecstasy and pleasure. "Enjoying yourself, wraith?" The hemomancer asked in pure curiosity.

"Certainly," the wraith growled as he changed positions. Skarlet was on top of Noob before, but now he was on top of her. Bi-Han wasn't someone that needed dominance in the bedroom, but he liked to have control at times. Skarlet didn't care; she just wanted to feel good and be in Bi-Han's embrace.

"Give me more," Skarlet whispered in a sultry voice. Noob gave her that dark smile before summoning Saibot. The clone appeared behind Skarlet and thrust his member into his backside. The red assassin was full at both ends, but didn't complain. The moans and screams got louder as Noob and Saibot pounded relentlessly in and out of her. Bi-Han loved how great Skarlet was in bed, but didn't have her as his for that. The wraith genuinely loved her and wanted to be her companion for life. He snapped out of his thoughts when her walls clamped around his member like a vice. That was when him and his clone began to go faster until they all climaxed.

The revenant and his shadow double pulled out and Saibot disappeared. "Was it good for you?" The wraith asked in a husky, lustful voice. It was good for him, no doubt, but he wondered how Skarlet found their playtime.

"Oh it was," the red assassin replied. "Are you ready for round two?"

_Damn_, Noob thought, _I must have really made her enjoy it_.

The wraith nodded and the duo went at it again. Noob had no idea what he'd unleashed in Skarlet.

* * *

_Earthrealm_

Sub-Zero and Smoke had returned back to Earthrealm. They didn't know why they had done so, since they had nowhere else to go. The duo couldn't stay in Outworld, and they couldn't stay in the Netherrealm. Bi-Han had ordered them to leave, as he wanted time alone with Skarlet. No doubt they'd be getting freaky.

"Where should we stay, Smoke? We cannot return to the Temple," Sub-Zero spoke. The Cryomancer was right, though. They had nowhere else to go. Smoke couldn't think of anywhere else to stay, either.

Just before the Enenra could reply, an unwanted presence was felt by the Cryomancer. The presence was unholy and evil, and Sub-Zero knew that it wasn't Bi-Han. Instead, it was some other kind of Netherrealm demon that was none other than Scorpion. The yellow-clad demon appeared before the two renegade; his presence only infuriated them more.

"What do you want?" Sub-Zero said, his voice monotone. Scorpion was the last person he wanted to see. What business did the demon have here? The spectre probably would have been in Outworld or the Netherrealm, not in Earthrealm.

"I want to apologise, Sub-Zero. You are nothing like your brother. You have respect for human life, and you have honour. I have been waiting for the day I would meet a Lin Kuei that had honour. You are that person, Sub-Zero," Scorpion said whilst bowing before the two men.

"Just get to the point!" Sub-Zero barked. He was slowly getting more and more annoying with the demon's presence, as was Smoke. Both wanted to be alone so that they could figure out what to do regarding sleep and refuge.

"I want to protect you, Sub-Zero. To atone for my actions. I am truly sorry that I have killed your brother. To make it up to you, I will become your guardian, and be more of a brother than Bi-Han was."

Hanzo's words infuriated Kuai Liang. How dare he call Bi-Han a bad brother?! Bi-Han was always there for Kuai Liang. The undead man tended to his younger brother's every whim and was always there for him. It was a shame that Bi-Han had become a wraith, even though the Cryomancer's soul was still very much alive.

It now made sense why Hanzo didn't put much of a fight up at all. Scorpion's intentions were to become Sub-Zero's bodyguard. But Kuai Liang would have none of it. The more he tried to decline, the louder the voice was in his head.

The voice was telling him to accept Scorpion's request, no matter how much the demon infuriated him. Having grown frustrated with the voice, Kuai Liang decided to accept the demon's request.

"Fine," he spoke. "But you must truly act like a bodyguard. I want you to give me space when I want to be alone, and not be too attached to me. **Am I clear**?"

Scorpion nodded, "Yes, Sub-Zero."

* * *

**-Sappy moments are my weakness. I can't write a story about family reunions without making it too emotional! **

**-That was a long chapter. These next few chapters won't be focusing on Skarlet AS MUCH as the past ones did. They will be focusing on other things, but Skarlet will obviously be in them. **

**-How was my lemon and fight scene?**

**-This is the beginning of Scorpion's defection. **

**-I know I probably rushed things a little. Forgive me. **

**-This story is ending rather soon. **


	17. Brought Back

The demon approached Sub-Zero at Shao Kahn's command. Scorpion stood before the young Cryomancer. The spectre did not want to fight the young man; Hanzo instead wanted to become Sub-Zero's guardian in atonement for his actions. Scorpion would do this no matter what resistance Kuai Liang put up.

Skarlet was indeed right; Scorpion looked rather fearsome. But Kuai Liang was not afraid. He was angry. Sub-Zero's blue eyes glared daggers at the demon before him. Kuai Liang would be more than happy to defeat the demon and kill him, no matter what. In the back of Sub-Zero's mind, he hoped that the Lin Kuei wouldn't intervene. Kuai Liang wanted revenge and he wanted it _now_.

"You will pay for what you have done to my brother!" Sub-Zero barked. His voice was hard and his words pierced through Scorpion like a bullet. It was as though Kuai Liang's voice was laced with steel, which would explain the hardness of his voice. The young man was angry more than anything, and would do anything to honour Bi-Han. Even if it meant putting blood on his soul and possibly suffering the same fate as his brother.

Scorpion did not say anything, but instead took his combat stance and prepared himself to fight. The demon could not find it in himself to harm Sub-Zero, as it would only make matters worse, and Hanzo wanted to be Kuai Liang's bodyguard. He couldn't harm the young Cryomancer if that was what he wanted.

"BEGIN!" Shao Kahn barked. Sub-Zero charged at his opponent with a slide, knocking the demon to his feet. A satisfying cry in pain could be heard, which increased Sub-Zero's adrenaline. He wanted nothing more than to make Scorpion pay for what he had done to Bi-Han. Scorpion regained his footing and decided to make it seem like a real fight was going on, not some kind of scratch match. He knew that if he just stood there and did nothing, the demon would not be honouring himself. So Scorpion would indeed have to fight back, but do so in such a way that he wouldn't hurt Kuai Liang.

Teleporting behind Sub-Zero, Scorpion connected with a rather gentle punch. He then attacked with a small combo with his swords that went _slash, slash_, _kick_. Kuai Liang soon got up and created his kori sword, and slashed rather frantically at his opponent. The sword attacks caused rips in the demon's clothing and flesh; blood was pouring out, but not profusely. It was in small amounts and Scorpion didn't seem to be in a lot of pain.

Skarlet's grey eyes set sight on the blood pouring from Scorpion's body. She really wanted to intervene and absorb his blood, as the crimson fluid looked rather tasty. The hemomancer hadn't had blood in days, and Skarlet was beginning to crave the fluid, more so than anything. She didn't want Smoke or Sub-Zero to know about her strange appetite, so the young tracker kept her cravings quiet. Bi-Han knew about her hemomancy, but Skarlet didn't have it in her to take his blood. The hemomancer loved him too much to do that.

The fight between the two men raged on. Sub-Zero sent Scorpion staggering back with a brutal right cross to the head. The demon was losing the battle due to his unwillingness of hurting Sub-Zero, as doing so would make the demon's request to be Kuai Liang's guardian seem rather fishy. The young Cryomancer attacked Scorpion with another sword combo, sending the demon to the ground. The spectre was too banged up by Sub-Zero to continue fighting. _Impressive_, Scorpion thought to himself.

Kuai Liang stood triumphantly over Scorpion's body, ready to kill the demon. Sub-Zero started to conjure up an ice blast in order to freeze the spectre in place, and then rip out Hanzo's spine with his head attached. "For my brother!"

But before Kuai Liang could act on his vengeful plans, the Lin Kuei cyborgs appeared around the young man, halting him in his tracks. Sub-Zero knew that they were going to automate him, and hoped that either Smoke or Skarlet would come to his rescue. It would only be fair, as Skarlet had saved Smoke from automation, so Kuai Liang hoped that she would save him too.

"Sub-Zero?! No!" Smoke shouted, his voice reeking despair. Skarlet's hands were snaking down to her kunai, which were strapped to her leg. Her conscience contemplated whether or not she should save Kuai Liang or not.

_You saved Smoke, so it is only fair. Bi-Han would want you to save Kuai Liang. The Emperor would grow angry with your betrayal. _

Going with what her conscience said, Skarlet threw her kunai at the cyberninjas. Each Lin Kuei member went down to the ground. Unlike the solid Lin Kuei warriors in the forest, these ones weren't real. They were apparition-like, and therefor could be killed with ease.

Sub-Zero scurried over to Skarlet and Smoke, who greeted him with a warm smile. Both men that accompanied her were equally happy with her decision to save Kuai Liang. The young tracker could tell that Shao Kahn knew of her defection, but he didn't say anything. He knew that since the young hemomancer had met Bi-Han, Skarlet had fallen in love with him. Love was something that caused loyalty to falter, so the Emperor knew that Skarlet would eventually defect. Thankfully Jade and Kitana hadn't done so.

The Lin Kuei Cyrax and Sektor, who had come with the other Lin Kuei, were trying to make a deal with the Emperor about automating Sub-Zero in exchange for their loyalty. Their deal was cut off when Skarlet rescued the Cryomancer, and for that reason, the two cyberninjas teleported away.

With them gone, Shao Kahn called his daughter over. He had sent her on a mission to hunt down the Lin Kuei and have them leave Outworld with face. Clearly, she had failed, as the Lin Kuei warriors were indeed in Outworld.

Kitana could tell that what her father wanted to speak about wasn't something that would be good, judging by the look of her face. _Oh shit. He must have known that I failed to intercept the Lin Kuei. But who were those warriors speaking to him? They were also Lin Kuei. Why didn't he send them away? I suppose it's because they gave their loyalty to him_.

"Kitana," Shao Kahn began, "How is it that Earthrealm ninjas brazenly appear before me, when my daughter, Princess of Outworld, was sent to intercept them!?" The Emperor's voice was as hard as steel. His voice was the pure depiction of anger and hatred. As he looked at the Princess, Shao Kahn pondered what her punishment would be for failing her mission.

"Father, I-"

"Be gone!" The Princess was harshly cut off by her father's abrupt interruption. She then headed into the Wastelands of Outworld to calm down and gather her thoughts.

From then on, many things happened in the Outworld tournament. Kung Lao was saved from a near-death experience by Liu Kang, who managed to pull the hat-wearing monk away from having his neck snapped by Shao Kahn. Kitana had been saved from execution by Liu Kang, and her and Jade defected from the Emperor. Liu Kang then fought Shao Kahn and bested the Emperor, punching through his chest with a fiery fist. Earthrealm had won the tournament, but the realm still remained in peril.

After the tournament, Skarlet, Kuai Liang and Smoke left the Koliseum and returned to Earthrealm with the other heroes. The hemomancer remembered that she wanted to take them to meet Bi-Han in the Netherrealm.

Skarlet turned to face her two friends, "Kuai Liang, would you like to meet your brother?" The hemomancer's voice sounded rather anxious, as she wasn't sure how she should have worded the question, nor was she sure about how he would react. The young tracker didn't want her ally to become emotional about what she had said.

Kuai Liang looked at Smoke, who nodded, implying that it would be good for the two brothers to reunite. "Yes, Skarlet. Would you like to come too, Tomas?"

The Enenra nodded at the question Kuai Liang just asked him, telling the Cryomancer that he wanted to meet Bi-Han as well. With that, the trio held hands on Skarlet's commands, and the hemomancer teleported them to the Netherrealm, where Bi-Han resided.

They carefully trudged in the cursed lands, and eventually were found by Noob Saibot. The wraith had sensed their presence and teleported to them. The revenant's face changed from an expressionless one to a smile. It was good to see his brother, his lover and an ally all at the same time.

"Brother?" Sub-Zero spoke, dumbfounded. He knew that the wraith before him was in fact Bi-Han, but was unsure for some reason. The revenant walked forward and hugged Kuai Liang and Smoke. The two renegade Lin Kuei were crying tears of joy. Skarlet thought that their brotherly moment was cute.

"What happened to you, Bi-Han? Why are you like this now?" Smoke pondered, having not been told about what had happened. The only thing he knew was that Bi-Han had died. The Enenra didn't know that Scorpion killed him, or that he had descended into Hell for having blood on his soul for killing Scorpion. The blood that tainted his soul was what brought him back as a wraith, but Bi-Han still lived. The former Cryomancer was still very much alive.

"Scorpion killed me during the tournament. A woman named Carnala came and helped him. She used a paralysis spell on me to keep me from moving, and Scorpion burnt me alive and tore out my skull and spine. I descended into the Netherrealm. Quan Chi resurrected me, but the magic he used to make me loyal to him wasn't strong enough. I am still very much the man you grew up with, Tomas."

He turned to face Sub-Zero, "Thankyou for honouring me, Kuai Liang. You have come a long way from being in my shadow to where you are now. I am very proud of you."

"Thankyou, Bi-Han. I am sorry that I failed to kill Scorpion. The Lin Kuei came and subdued me, and in that time, Scorpion escaped. I could tell that he wasn't putting up much of a fight for some reason."

Noob Saibot placed a hand on Kuai Liang and Tomas' shoulders, "Soon I will be free. I am dying to get out of this place. Being back home in Earthrealm outweighs everything. Now, I would like to be alone with Skarlet. There is something I have to talk to her about."

The hemomancer's face turned beet red with embarrassment. She hoped that he wasn't breaking up with her. The young tracker's world would be over if he did. Bi-Han was everything to Skarlet.

Using his magic to open a portal back to Earthrealm, which the two renegade Lin Kuei entered, Noob Saibot turned his attention to Skarlet. The wraith smiled darkly and Skarlet suddenly felt uneasy. He gently grabbed Skarlet's hand and picked her up bridal-style. The hemomancer felt very safe in Bi-Han's arms.

Noob took her to a chamber in the Netherrealm that had a bed. Skarlet immediately knew what they were going to do, and she was glad that he was going to claim her. The hemomancer had been wondering when he would do as such.

Bi-Han gently placed her on the bed and gave Skarlet the dark smile that he had done before. The hemomancer immediately began disrobing. She did not take long, as she wore hardly any clothes. Noob followed suite and was impressed with the young tracker's hastiness when it came to sex.

Both of them liked what they saw. The hemomancer noticed that Noob Saibot had a rather masculine body; his arms and chest were defined. Skarlet's eyes travelled to his erect member, which proudly stood. The wraith's member was bigger than that pindick Rain had.

Skarlet had a well-conditioned body from the training she had undergone in the first nine years of her existence. Her body was clean and shaven, as was the spot inbetween her legs. Noob Saibot wondered how she tasted, and how good she was in bed. But he brushed his thoughts aside as he was going to be able to find out first hand.

Noob took off his mask and leaned forward to kiss Skarlet. Her lips tasted like strawberries and were very sweet. They got their tongues involved and that was when their hands wrapped around the others body. Skarlet's tastebuds went haywire as her red appendage explored Noob Saibot's mouth. He tasted good. As she thought this, the young hemomancer wondered how she tasted.

The red assassin decided to be naughty and grip Noob's appendage. The revenant let out a growl as the hemomancer's hand pumped up and down on the shaft. Her ministrations felt great and the wraith had to suck in orgasms, as he didn't want to stop now. Skarlet grew bold enough to take Noob in her mouth, the black wraith letting out a loud moan. The red assassin's head bobbed up and down on his member; she liked how he tasted.

As Noob was about to spill, Skarlet halted, having sensed Noob's desire to not come yet. The revenant then pressed his lips to her neck and began to nip, suck and lick at the flesh. Skarlet tasted like strawberries and Noob loved how she tasted. The demon continued his ministrations from his neck to her breasts. Noob payed attention to both bosoms, and made sure to not use his teeth. The taste of his lover was making Bi-Han crazy with lust.

He then came down to that special spot in between her legs. Bi-Han kissed her thighs teasingly, his lips getting closer to her entrance with each kiss. Noob could smell her desire and knew that she was ready. The revenant placed his head in front of her navel and kissed it. The hemomancer let out a loud moan and grabbed Noob by the back of the head, holding him in front of her crotch. The wraith lashed his tongue furiously to pleasure his lover. He made sure that Skarlet did not orgasm.

The wraith laid down on the bed and Skarlet used her common sense to lower herself on Noob's member. Both hissed in pleasure from the feeling. The warmth was what made this most enjoyable for Noob, whilst the feeling of having something inside her made it most enjoyable for Skarlet. The hemomancer wanted to feel good and she wanted to feel it now.

The two lovers began to thrust in sync. Noob pounded relentlessly in and out of his Skarlet and enjoyed every second of it. The room was filled with screams, moans, and growls of ecstasy and pleasure. "Enjoying yourself, wraith?" The hemomancer asked in pure curiosity.

"Certainly," the wraith growled as he changed positions. Skarlet was on top of Noob before, but now he was on top of her. Bi-Han wasn't someone that needed dominance in the bedroom, but he liked to have control at times. Skarlet didn't care; she just wanted to feel good and be in Bi-Han's embrace.

"Give me more," Skarlet whispered in a sultry voice. Noob gave her that dark smile before summoning Saibot. The clone appeared behind Skarlet and thrust his member into his backside. The red assassin was full at both ends, but didn't complain. The moans and screams got louder as Noob and Saibot pounded relentlessly in and out of her. Bi-Han loved how great Skarlet was in bed, but didn't have her as his for that. The wraith genuinely loved her and wanted to be her companion for life. He snapped out of his thoughts when her walls clamped around his member like a vice. That was when him and his clone began to go faster until they all climaxed.

The revenant and his shadow double pulled out and Saibot disappeared. "Was it good for you?" The wraith asked in a husky, lustful voice. It was good for him, no doubt, but he wondered how Skarlet found their playtime.

"Oh it was," the red assassin replied. "Are you ready for round two?"

_Damn_, Noob thought, _I must have really made her enjoy it_.

The wraith nodded and the duo went at it again. Noob had no idea what he'd unleashed in Skarlet.

* * *

_Earthrealm_

Sub-Zero and Smoke had returned back to Earthrealm. They didn't know why they had done so, since they had nowhere else to go. The duo couldn't stay in Outworld, and they couldn't stay in the Netherrealm. Bi-Han had ordered them to leave, as he wanted time alone with Skarlet. No doubt they'd be getting freaky.

"Where should we stay, Smoke? We cannot return to the Temple," Sub-Zero spoke. The Cryomancer was right, though. They had nowhere else to go. Smoke couldn't think of anywhere else to stay, either.

Just before the Enenra could reply, an unwanted presence was felt by the Cryomancer. The presence was unholy and evil, and Sub-Zero knew that it wasn't Bi-Han. Instead, it was some other kind of Netherrealm demon that was none other than Scorpion. The yellow-clad demon appeared before the two renegade; his presence only infuriated them more.

"What do you want?" Sub-Zero said, his voice monotone. Scorpion was the last person he wanted to see. What business did the demon have here? The spectre probably would have been in Outworld or the Netherrealm, not in Earthrealm.

"I want to apologise, Sub-Zero. You are nothing like your brother. You have respect for human life, and you have honour. I have been waiting for the day I would meet a Lin Kuei that had honour. You are that person, Sub-Zero," Scorpion said whilst bowing before the two men.

"Just get to the point!" Sub-Zero barked. He was slowly getting more and more annoying with the demon's presence, as was Smoke. Both wanted to be alone so that they could figure out what to do regarding sleep and refuge.

"I want to protect you, Sub-Zero. To atone for my actions. I am truly sorry that I have killed your brother. To make it up to you, I will become your guardian, and be more of a brother than Bi-Han was."

Hanzo's words infuriated Kuai Liang. How dare he call Bi-Han a bad brother?! Bi-Han was always there for Kuai Liang. The undead man tended to his younger brother's every whim and was always there for him. It was a shame that Bi-Han had become a wraith, even though the Cryomancer's soul was still very much alive.

It now made sense why Hanzo didn't put much of a fight up at all. Scorpion's intentions were to become Sub-Zero's bodyguard. But Kuai Liang would have none of it. The more he tried to decline, the louder the voice was in his head.

The voice was telling him to accept Scorpion's request, no matter how much the demon infuriated him. Having grown frustrated with the voice, Kuai Liang decided to accept the demon's request.

"Fine," he spoke. "But you must truly act like a bodyguard. I want you to give me space when I want to be alone, and not be too attached to me. **Am I clear**?"

Scorpion nodded, "Yes, Sub-Zero."

* * *

**-Sappy moments are my weakness. I can't write a story about family reunions without making it too emotional! **

**-That was a long chapter. These next few chapters won't be focusing on Skarlet AS MUCH as the past ones did. They will be focusing on other things, but Skarlet will obviously be in them. **

**-How was my lemon and fight scene?**

**-This is the beginning of Scorpion's defection. **

**-I know I probably rushed things a little. Forgive me. **

**-This story is ending rather soon. **


	18. Realization

"There's something I need to tell you."

Bi-Han's voice sounded sad, and rather quiet. Scorpion was anxious about what the wraith was going to tell him, but was listening very carefully. The natural scene around the two men was very calming. Hanzo was sitting against a tree that was decorated with emerald green leaves. Around the two men was several plants and beautiful flowers. The even-toned colours were very calming, and were captivating to Scorpion. The demon felt ashamed with himself for being calmed by _nature. _Hell, he was a spectre! Scorpion was supposed to be aggressive and edgy and careless about everything and everyone. But he was being calmed by nature. _I seriously think that I'm losing my edge…._

The demon looked up at Noob Saibot, "I'm listening." His voice was soft, and sounded similar to Bi-Han's when he started their conversation. The demon's voice was normally harsh and deep, but this time it was soft and mellow. _I really am losing my edge_, Scorpion thought. But that was not important. What was important was what Bi-Han was going to tell him.

Noob Saibot sat down in front of Scorpion, "Whilst I was in the Netherrealm, I overheard Quan Chi tell Shinnok about my death. I heard him talk about the Shirai Ryu massacre…" The revenant's throat started to hitch. He was going to be the one that would break the news to Scorpion about his family and clan. The wraith wasn't sure if he could do this. Noob Saibot eventually decided to tell Scorpion how it was.

"Do you remember the mission that you and I were sent on in the Shaolin Temple, by our respective clans? Quan Chi hired the Lin Kuei to retrieve the Map of Elements from the Shaolin Temple, and I was chosen by the clan. I defeated and killed you in our battle, and returned with the Map. I returned to Quan Chi with the Map, and in exchange for the Lin Kuei completing the mission, Quan Chi wiped out the entire Shirai Ryu. He knew that since I had killed you, it would have made sense that I killed the entire Shirai Ryu as well. Quan Chi brought you back to life and wanted you to kill me, so that he would have my soul as well, and so he could have both of us as his command."

Scorpion stared at Noob with disbelief. Heaviness weighed on his chest, and the spectre felt like he was going to cry. But he couldn't. The yellow-clad ninja was only capable of feeling emotions such as anger and hatred, as well as a desire of revenge.

It felt overwhelming, taking all of this information in. Scorpion could not believe that he had been resurrected to serve a false purpose; to serve a liar that was a pathological liar. The demon stood up and ran away from Bi-Han, sprinting as fast as he could. Scorpion needed to get away from it all. He couldn't live with the fact that he had killed someone for no reason, and could never see his family and clan again. All because of a lie that Scorpion was so convinced by.

"Scorpion! Wait!" Noob Saibot called out. The demon continued running as though he hadn't heard anything. The yellow-clad man felt like dying again, with the hope that his soul would happily descend into the afterlife, and would not be resurrected. Scorpion just wanted to be with his family and clan.

The wraith decided to materialise into the ground and travel closer to Scorpion. In this state, Noob was much quicker, as he did not use his body to move. The revenant used his sorcery to make him move on his own. It was much easier that way.

The revenant caught up to the spectre, and materialised into his true form behind him. Placing a gentle hand on the man's shoulder, Noob Saibot spoke, "I'm sorry, Scorpion. I didn't want to tell you, but I had to. Life isn't about living a lie, or a sugarcoated fairy tale. It's about living your own path, not one made for you. I hope that with what I've told you, you can live your own path. I know that we're enemies, but we can't remain that way forever. In the end, both of us did something wrong, and the least we can do is forgive eachother."

Noob Saibot was right. Scorpion couldn't live like this any longer. He couldn't hate Bi-Han for no reason. The man had done nothing wrong. Quan Chi was the true perpetrator behind the massacre, and the one that created this whole conflict. It was sad that both men suffered for no reason. Both men had died with blood on their souls and were brought back to life as wraiths. They couldn't even descend into the afterlife peacefully.

"You are right, Bi-Han. I am sorry for wanting to kill you all of these years. Please, forgive me," Scorpion spoke. The magic that ensnared him was beginning to break. The spectre felt no more desire for vengeance against Noob Saibot; he instead wanted the sorcerer's head on a plate that he would perhaps feed to Mileena as a treat.

"Does this mean we're friends?" Scorpion's voice was dripping with an odd fear. He had asked this question without thinking, and feared that this would screw things up even further between them. He was surprised by the response that the wraith gave him. Well, not entirely, as it was kind of anticipated.

"I suppose so, Scorpion. During the invasion I will be fighting on Earthrealm's side. I hear that you're now Kuai Liang's bodyguard."

"Yes. I wanted to become his protector to atone for my past actions."

"Very well. But if you hurt my brother at all, I promise that I'll repeat history. You might also want to reconcile with Skarlet. From last time, I take it that she hates you."

Scorpion knew that whilst he was on Quan Chi's side, he lusted for Skarlet. He knew that Quan Chi planned to conquer and take over Outworld, and when the pale sorcerer did, Scorpion would claim Skarlet as his own. Skarlet had rekindled her relationship with Bi-Han after his resurrection, and since then, the spectre's lust for her had died down. He respected that she was with Noob Saibot, and liked them as a couple. They reminded him of his relationship with his wife.

Quan Chi would pay dearly.

"I will do my best to make it up to Skarlet. And as for Kuai Liang, I have no desire to harm him. I promise to keep him safe and make sure that he survives this entire conflict. You know, Bi-Han, you're a lot more likeable now that you're dead."

Noob Saibot smiled at the spectre, "I'm glad we can finally get along. Let's go back to Skarlet and the others. We must associate ourselves with Earthrealm for the upcoming conflict. I have no desire to associate myself with Outworld or the Netherrealm."

"Neither do I. I am tired of always wanting revenge. Let's go."

* * *

_Shao Kahn's Throneroom_

Sindel had been taken to the Throneroom by Quan Chi, who had been demanded to do so by the Queen. The undead Edenian wanted to see her husband more than anything.

The Throneroom hadn't changed much, except a lot of people were in it more often than before. The room was mostly black and gold. A picture of what appeared to be Shao Kahn with black patterns around it, and there were golden pillars, four on each side of the room. On the area past the pillars were two doors with candles at some kind of slot-like component in the wall.

As the Emperor and Empress embraced, Shao Kahn could tell that something was off about his Queen. Though Sindel's strength slightly increased after her rebirth, she wasn't at full strength. Her strength was at the same level of a regular Edenian. The Emperor could easily rectify that, of course.

"Shang Tsung!" The Emperor barked, requesting for his servant. The sorcerer obediently came to Shao Kahn's side, hoping to be given a chance to redeem himself.

"Yes Emperor?" The sorcerer's hopes were raising. "The Empress requires something of you," Shao Kahn said. And with that, the Emperor used his magic to absorb Shang Tsung's souls to give to Sindel. Shang Tsung's souls were what gave him strength, and if he gave them to Sindel, the Edenian Empress would surely be strengthened. A loud scream that depicted pure excruciating pain rung throughout the room, but the body of Shang Tsung fell to the ground lifelessly. Shao Kahn gave the souls to Sindel, who screamed out in pain at first, but eventually got used to the power.

With the process complete, Shao Kahn looked at Sindel as though he had a task for her. "I want you to go to Earthrealm with the Lin Kuei. You are to assassinate the Earthrealm heroes. All of them. Do not show mercy to any of them." With that, the Emperor opened a portal for Sindel and the Lin Kuei to go to Earthrealm in.

* * *

**-More sappiness. D:**

**-Sindel is going to be wreaking havoc. Uh oh.**

**-Do any of you watch American Horror Story? Comment if you do; I'm eventually writing a fanfic about it. I've written one before about it, but both times I wrote it I wasn't happy. But now I've gotten better at writing, so I'll re-do one. (WHEN I FINISH THIS FIC AND THE AFTERMATH).**


	19. Preparing the Spell

**-Hi guys! I have completed The Aftermath, so my attention will be fully devoted to this story (unless I am busy of course). But nonetheless I will try to get this story finished over the weekend, or at least close to being finished. And to answer your questions, I will be remastering other stories from the past. Enough of me, enjoy this chapter. **

* * *

"We should start acting on what the Emperor has requested of us."

"How are we to acquire the souls without our mission becoming known to the Earthrealm heroes? We cannot do this without being discreet, Quan Chi. We am positive of this."

The pale sorcerer nodded to the soul-construct, "You are right, Ermac. We will have to use magic to kidnap them. Your telekinesis, perhaps, will help us complete our task. We must find the soldiers base, and with your telekinesis, take them to the Graveyard. Goro, Kintaro and Kano will also be capturing soldiers, no doubt."

Ermac had not been aware of this. Nobody had told him that there would be other people taking part in the objective given to him and Quan Chi. But nonetheless, he hoped that the plan would go smoothly.

"Very well," the soul-construct said in his voice- voices? -which seemed to buzz as he spoke. Ermac's voice was deep but was made up of a lot of tones and pitches and frequency. "We must act on our plan now. No doubt The Thunder Dog and his underlings are acting. I assume that with Skarlet and Noob Saibot on their side now, that the heroes will know of our plans."

"What?! Noob Saibot allies himself with _Earthrealm_?" Quan Chi couldn't believe it. The wraith had _already _defected from the magic that bound him to the sorcerer. No doubt his red lover had helped him jump ship. But it would only be inevitable that somebody betrayed their master. Nobody stayed loyal to someone forever, not without the thought of deception or betrayal eventually crossing their mind.

"Yes, Master Quan Chi. Have you not heard? They have been having trysts since they first met after Bi-Han's rebirth. You need to be more up to date, Master. We know things that are right under our noises."

"Well yes, but you have telepathy. You are capable of reading the minds of others, Ermac. Though I am a sorcerer, my powers have limits. I am not able to read the thoughts of others by simply walking past them. I have to engage in telepathic contact with their mind."

Ermac snorted. "Enough with your sob story," he -they- growled. "We must act on our mission! The soldiers may have left their base and then we have failed our mission, thanks to you!"

The pale sorcerer rolled his eyes, and stealthily approached the soldiers army base. They were discussing the odd disturbances that had been affecting Earthrealm as of late. Portals had been opening up in Earthrealm, and from it burst forth horrific creatures of Outworld, such as the Tarkatans, the Saurians, the Shokan and the Centaur. Before his death, Shang Tsung had created several Saurians to aid the Emperor in his invasion. They had since been taken under the wing of Reptile, a Saurian that served the Emperor. The creatures would burst forth from the portals and ravage everything in sight. They would destroy the heaviest of objects, the tallest of buildings, and even the most insignificant objects. They simply destroyed everything in their path. Nobody that came across them would be left unharmed. No doubt the Emperor had requested this of them, but it could also be that their bloodthirsty-ness had kicked in upon being in the very realm they despised with every fibre of their being.

The creatures had either been defeated, or they had retreated due to the fact that they were outnumbered. The soldiers were discussing the disturbances, and had eventually come to the conclusion that the disturbances were due to interferences from an alien world that had those kinds of creatures roaming the lands, presumably wreaking havoc everywhere they went.

Whilst the soldiers were distracted with their plans, Quan Chi and Ermac had decided to make their move. The pale man whispered in his comrades ear, "Act now. They are not prepared for anything to attack now. Bring them to the Graveyard. Goro, Kintaro and Kano are going to be arriving soon."

They followed the orders bestowed upon them and used their telekinesis to elevate the soldiers and throw them to the Graveyard. Green energy covered the soldiers like a blanket and the outline of what appeared to be skulls was imprinted in the energy. The remainders of the warriors were left behind for Goro, Kintaro and Kano, who's presence could be sensed by Ermac. The three males suddenly burst forth and forcefully grabbed the remaining warriors and threw them in the back of an armoured car, which Kano was driving. The Black Dragon Thug had stolen it from a police station, but not before killing all of the cops there. He was careful in doing so, for he did not want to be arrested whilst on an important mission. But this mission wasn't even important. He was only participating in this so that he would eventually be paid.

Once the three warriors had obtained the warriors they needed, Goro conjured a portal to Outworld, which Kano drove through. The three warriors would now go to the Clocktower and await Quan Chi's orders. They could not act so hastily as they desired.

When they had gotten to the Clocktower, Goro handcuffed the warriors, the metallic bonds restraining every warrior they had captured. The soldiers could not do anything, so they were sitting down on the floor, anxiety flooding them. Never had they been prepared for something like this.

* * *

_Earthrealm Streets_

Sindel and the Lin Kuei had been dispatched by Shao Kahn to venture into the streets of Earthrealm and locate Raiden's underlings. With the Empress' newfound strength, courtesy of Shang Tsung, Sindel and her allies could ambush the Earthrealm heroes and assassinate them with ease. That would make things a lot easier for Shao Kahn, whom Sindel was rather eager to please. She loved her husband very much.

Standing on the left and right side of Sindel were Cyrax and Sektor, who led the Lin Kuei. The white-haired woman looked around the destruction that littered the streets. Buildings had toppled over, lots of buildings, and roads were cracked some severed. Sindel suddenly remembered her former life as the Edenian Queen; the throwback caused her to feel as though she had a headache. The Empress regained her composure and inwardly shouted at herself for having lived in this realm of weaklings. She was much better than that.

"Raiden's underlings are near," Cyrax spoke. His sensors had been tracking them since he and his comrades had arrived in Earthrealm. The Lin Kuei cyberninjas were excellent trackers for their cybernetic enhancements allowed them to identify the locations of people with a simple gaze. They could identify who was in a building that was in eyeshot, no matter the distance between the building and the cyborg. It was truly useful when it came to hunting down enemies. Cyrax decided to use this opportunity to capture both Sub-Zero and Smoke, and automate them. It may even serve them well to automate several other Earthrealm heroes.

"Excellent. The sooner we find them, the sooner I will have my revenge against them settled. Those bastards made me weak…I am much more than what they are! They made me feel like one of them, and they are definitely going to regret it…"

It didn't take a genius to know that Sindel was only speaking those words due to her brainwashed state. Had she not been placed under the mind control by Quan Chi upon her resurrection, the Empress would be detesting her mission like there was no tomorrow. Her mind suddenly drifted to her daughter, whom had jumped ship and sided with Earthrealm. She wondered if Jade had done so as well.

But none of that mattered, for those two women, as well as the rest of the Earthrealm heroes, would soon be meeting their end.

Very, very soon…

* * *

_Graveyard_

Quan Chi had bound the warriors to handcuffs, the metallic object constricting the wrists of each soldier Ermac had successfully kidnapped. From the soul-construct's hand came green energy that circled the warriors, and as Ermac used his sorcery to prepare the soldier's souls for the Soulnado, Quan Chi began muttering an incantation that would create the Soulnado. The spell was coming together beautifully. Soon, Shao Kahn's strength would increase tenfold, and nobody would be able to stop him from claiming Earthrealm.

Nobody would… Not even the Elder Gods.

* * *

_Botan Jungle_

The five renegade warriors had since awoken from their slumber in the Forest, having found refuge in a Temple. Though it wasn't every comfortable, they had to make do with what they could. Skarlet awoke first, followed by Smoke and Sub-Zero. Noob Saibot and Scorpion did not need sleep, so they stood on guard for any intruders that could barge in at any given moment. Noob Saibot wanted nothing more than the safety of his comrades, even the safety of Scorpion, his tentative ally. The two undead warriors had since made amends and decided to put the past behind them, even though it was rather difficult at first.

The three newly-awoken warriors stood up and stretched, and bid good morning to their allies. They knew that they would eventually have to catch up with Raiden. Nobody in their 'group' would be able to find the Thunder God and his allies except for the hemomancer, who's tracking abilities allowed her to find people by smelling their blood from any proximity. Even so, it was more accurate when she was somewhat close to the target.

"We must make haste," the red assassin said as she looked around the room. The Temple was not elegant; it looked more run-down and had hardly anything in it, save for prophecies on the wall and statues at the end of the room, and one in the middle of the room. The appearance of the Temple did not matter to either warrior, except the creepy crawlies that littered the floor scared both Smoke and Skarlet.

"Sindel has been reawakened and bewitched by Quan Chi's sorcery. She aligns herself with the Lin Kuei, and they are approaching our allies as we speak. Sindel is a dangerous woman, and coupled with the Lin Kuei, it is possible that all of us may fall. We must find our allies in order to protect them from the nearing danger."

Tomas raised an eyebrow. How did Skarlet know of what was happening? Surely she wasn't able to sense the future. She was a hemomancer – her powers were based on blood and blood only. How would she be able to have premonitions? Unless Shao Kahn had bestowed her with such an ability.

"How do you know this is to happen?"

"I have premonitions. Though they are irregular, they are accurate. I only receive them if it concerns me at all, Tomas. That is how I know of Sindel's rebirth and her mission to assassinate the Earthrealm heroes. As I said, we must make haste."

Sub-Zero, Smoke, Noob Saibot and Scorpion nodded in agreement. "Our allies are in the Cathedral in Earthrealm. I trust all of you are able to teleport," the hemomancer spoke. She knew that Smoke could teleport, as could Bi-Han and Hanzo Hasashi, but could Sub-Zero? Skarlet hadn't even considered that.

The four males nodded once more. Smoke teleported in a wisp of grey air, Scorpion vanished with a burst of flames, Noob Saibot materialised into a black, tar-like substance, and Sub-Zero's entire body froze and he fell backwards. The ground he fell onto acted like a portal and took him to the desired destination.

Skarlet then decided to follow suite. She stabbed herself and materialised into blood, and, like her lover, used this method of transportation to arrive at the Cathedral. Since the hemomancer was faster in this form, it would only take a matter of seconds to get to the Cathedral.

She prayed that her and her friends would be safe from Sindel and the Lin Kuei…

* * *

**-Dun dun dun!**

**-This chapter had me on edge the entire time for some reason…**

**-Chapter 20 and 21 coming soon.**

**-Hope you enjoyed!**


	20. Bad News

Skarlet and the four male shinobis had reached the Cathedral. The place looked very old and as though it had been vandalised. The remains of chairs littered the floor in very small pieces, and on the altar was a table with nothing on it. There was nothing in the Cathedral except for that table, as well as candles on the left and right hand sides of the stage that were ignited.

In the Cathedral stood Raiden, Liu Kang, Kung Lao, Johnny Cage, Nightwolf, Kitana, Jade, Sonya Blade, Jax, Stryker, and Kabal. They all stood around the table, discussing events that had transpired. Sonya was the one that spoke first.

"How do we know? Raiden could be having visions of _possible _futures, not _the _future?"

"Sonya's right," Jax chimed in, "Was I supposed to have my arms replaced with cybernetics, or was it caused by interfering with the timeline?" The black-skinned Major held up his metallic arms that had been fitted after having his real arms ripped off by Ermac. The soul-construct and Jax had squared off but the fight was quickly ended after Ermac dismembered the Major. The abomination had his used powers to explode Jax's arms, causing them to almost literally burst. With Sonya's help, the bleeding stopped, and Jax had survived.

The Princess was growing increasingly frustrated with everybody's negativity. She didn't know why people were acting as such. It was not like Shao Kahn's plans had succeeded. Though she didn't know what to think about the Thunder God's visions, Kitana was sure as hell that she didn't want to have a negative approach to the conflict. She instead wanted to be optimistic about what was going on.

"This isn't helpful. We can't constantly second guess our decisions. Raiden, what are your thoughts?" The azure-clad woman asked.

The Thunder God seemed to be in 'la-la land' a phrase that the Princess had learned from Johnny Cage. Raiden had his face in his palm and seemed to be having some kind of internal conflict. He wasn't saying anything, nor was he doing anything. His gaze was to the ground that he and his comrades stood on.

"Raiden?" The Princess repeated. She suddenly thought that there might be something wrong with Raiden, so she felt bad for pestering him when he might not have been in top-form. But the Edenian woman doubted that he would have gotten angry about what she had said.

"Yes…that is best…" The Thunder God's voice was pained and sounded sick. Kitana suddenly started to lose hope, as did the other Earthrealm heroes, except for Nightwolf. He was always confident that the spirits would help them at one point or another. But would they really help them for the upcoming conflict?

Before anybody could say anything, Sub-Zero, Noob Saibot, Skarlet, Smoke, and Scorpion rose from the ground. Kuai Liang's figure was at first an ice stature before cracking to reveal himself, Smoke rose from the ground with several puffs of smoke emerging, Scorpion jumped out from the ground with a burst of flames, Noob Saibot rose from the ground, having spawned from a shadow silhouette, and Skarlet rose from a puddle of blood. The Earthrealm heroes were glad to see their friends, but the hemomancer was not bearing good news.

The Earthrealm heroes smiled at the newcomers, all of them except Scorpion. Nobody liked the spectre, for he was on Quan Chi's side. Nobody knew who Noob Saibot was, but they smiled at him to make the revenant feel welcome. It was polite, anyway.

"Greetings, my friends. I believe you all know that Shao Kahn will not easily abandon his claim to Earthrealm. The Emperor has had Quan Chi resurrect Sindel, and with his sorcery, has bound the Queen to Shao Kahn. He can now enter Earthrealm and will be using his sorcery to merge the two realms as he invades it," the hemomancer said. Her voice was monotone and quiet, but reflected anger and dismay. She would not let her new friends and new life be easily ripped away by someone who wanted nothing more but power. Skarlet did not like how he cared for nothing but having every realm merged with Outworld. She had learnt what he had done to Kitana's real family, which made the red assassin hate him even more.

The Earthrealm heroes looked at each other, their responses mixed. Kitana and Jade trusted Skarlet, but Raiden and the other heroes weren't so sure. They did not know if Skarlet was entirely trustful or not.

"And how do you know this, Skarlet?" Raiden pondered. That was the exact response Smoke had relayed her whilst in the Temple of Argus. The red warrior frowned slightly and turned to face the Thunder God.

"I get premonitions for some reason, based on things that affect me, like Shao Kahn's invasion for example. That is how I know of what the Emperor plans to do. I would not lie to you."

The hat-wearing man looked at Skarlet for a long time to see if there was a hint of deceit in her eyes. But there wasn't. The girl was indeed telling the truth. "Very well. I will take what you have said into consideration. I cannot sense any deception in your eyes, so you must be credible."

Skarlet was glad that Raiden had believed her. She did not tell them what she had seen with false pretence. Sindel had indeed been resurrected and with that, Shao Kahn could invade Earthrealm and merge it with his magic whilst in the realm. But the other warriors still had their doubts.

* * *

_Earthrealm Streets_

Sindel and the Lin Kuei were now outside of the Cathedral. The Queen's heart raced with excitement as she was going to be able to extract revenge on the people that made her weak. The white-haired woman wondered how she would do as such. She wondered if she would rip out their spines, or their hearts, or their stomachs, or just tear off their heads. The thought of being able to rip her enemies apart excited Sindel.

But the more she thought of how she would kill them, Sindel remembered what they once were. Raiden was once her lover before she met Jerrod. Kitana was her daughter and Jade was her servant, but the green-clad shinobi was also like a daughter to her. Shao Kahn was the one that killed her husband and forced Sindel into an arranged marriage with him. That was when the Queen committed suicide.

She would not let those thoughts of the times that she was weak get the better of her. No way in hell. Sindel and her comrades proceeded into the Cathedral to kill the Earthrealm heroes. But she had something better in mind.

"I will finish the job. You two and the Lin Kuei will attack the heroes first. I will then go in to kill those that have survived."

The two cyborgs nodded, and headed into the Cathedral with their underlings. This would be easy…


	21. Jumped Ship

There was a long eerie silence in the Cathedral between the Earthrealm heroes. Nobody knew what to say or how to say it. As such, there was an eerie silence until Skarlet smelt an odd scent in the room. The scent was not that of a human, but instead of a cyborg. The hemomancer immediately knew what was in the room, despite it being invisible to the eye.

"Wait…" the red assassin said as she turned to look around the room. The scent grew even stronger and Skarlet knew that her suspicions had been confirmed, "The Lin Kuei, they surround us!"

As if on cue, several Lin Kuei warriors materialised in every spot of the room. Some were on the staircase, others near the altar, or where the church-goers would sit during the time when the Cathedral was used. All of the heroes stood ready to fight.

The cyborgs and the heroes charged at each other, with the intent to kill. Cyrax fought Sub-Zero whilst Sektor fought Smoke. Noob Saibot and the rest of the heroes were combating the rest of the Lin Kuei cyborgs. The sound of fists and feet colliding with armour sounded rather funny, yet also annoying. _CLANG, CLANG, CLANG_.

After a long, tiring battle, Smoke and Sub-Zero emerged the victors of their fights. Each kombatant had killed their opponent, by means of either decapitation, dismemberment, dissection, cremation, explosion, or even by being eaten. Blood was splattered across the kombatant's clothes, or across the floor and walls. Nonetheless, the cyborgs were dead.

Sindel had been watching the events unfold and knew that she would have to take action. The Lin Kuei warriors had been killed, all of them. Even Sektor and Cyrax had been counted amongst the dead, courtesy of the two renegade Lin Kuei. The white-haired woman decided to make an entrance in the most fearsome way possible.

The warriors had regrouped after the battle. Kitana approached Skarlet and the look on the Princess' face depicted worry and fear. The hemomancer had never since her ally look so afraid. "What is it?"

The azure-clad woman could see her mother emerging from the entrance of the Cathedral. The white-haired woman was using her banshee scream to shatter the fighter's defence and possibly even kill them. The scream was so loud that the warriors were sent staggering back, but Kitana wasn't phased. She was angry.

The Princess' face shifted from fear to anger. Her mother had been corrupted, and Kitana was more than determined to save Mother from the evil that bound her to Shao Kahn. Kitana would even torture her Mother if it meant that Sindel would be freed of Shao Kahn's corruption. She drew her fans and prepared to fight.

"Mother…" the Princess hissed, her voice harsh. The white-haired woman stood in front of all the kombatants, who were ready to fight. They figured that Sindel was aligned with the Lin Kuei, and that she had been a back-up in their plans to eliminate the heroes. But they would not go down. Not without a fight.

"Come forward if you dare! I will FINISH what the Lin Kuei could not!" Her voice was deep, much deeper than either Kitana or Jade could remember. The Princess had decided that this fight would be hers and only hers. Nobody could interfere in the fight to save her mother.

"This fight is mine and mine alone…" the Princess barked as she drew her fans and charged at Sindel. The Empress saw the challenger approach and was ready to attack, regardless that the Princess was her daughter.

Kitana's attacks went _kick, slash, slash, uppercut_. The Queen regained her footing and used her fireballs to sent Kitana toppling over. The purple projectiles were massive and very powerful. But the Princess was not done yet. She would stop at nothing to have her mother fight on her side.

Kitana got up and charged at Sindel. Her tessens were closed and the Princess released a blood-curdling scream as she jumped at her mother. The fans pierced through Sindel's shoulders and sent the Empress to the ground. Kitana was on top of her and with the weapons impaling Sindel, the Princess could knock some sense into the woman before her.

She postured up and attacked Sindel with a myriad of punches that sent the woman's face left and right. Goose-eggs and purple bruises were on the Empress' face and the injuries grew worse with every punch. As Sindel was assaulted, she began to remember her former life as the Queen of Edenia.

"You are a horrible excuse of a mother! How could you let yourself be bound to Shao Kahn?! How could you dishonour Edenia like that! How could you leave me, all by myself, with no family!"

Kitana was furious with her mother for how she would easily let herself be possessed by Quan Chi's magic, even though it was not entirely her fault. But what angered Kitana the most was that Sindel had died instead of being there for her daughter when she was growing up. That was the main reason why Kitana was being horrible to her mother, even though it wasn't right.

Sindel remembered that she had committed suicide to get away from the life she had in Outworld, as Shao Kahn's Empress. She missed her husband, Jerrod, the King of Edenia, and could not stand being with Shao Kahn any longer. The memories of her former life and Kitana's assault was enough to make Sindel jump ship within the blink of an eye. Quan Chi's magic grew thinner and thinner with every punch. Sindel was about to black out from Kitana's assault.

Nightwolf must have noticed this, as he forcefully grabbed Kitana and pulled her off of Sindel. "Have you no honour, assaulting your mother like that?! Both of you are in the wrong here. Sindel did something wrong, but so did you. You cannot attack your mother for wanting to escape from Shao Kahn."

The Princess was even more fed up with what Nightwolf had said to her. "Oh, Nightwolf, SPARE ME THE WISDOM! Is this what you're like with everyone you know?! Trying to mould them into some faithful person that never thinks realistically, or negatively?!"

"Kitana, when thunder strikes a tree, and the apples spill from it, do you resent the thunder for killing the apples, or do you do something good with those apples?" Nightwolf told her. He was referring to how instead of assaulting Sindel, she could have a much less harmful approach to having her jump ship.

Kitana looked up at Nightwolf. He was right, no matter what she could do or say. "You're right, Nightwolf. I am sorry."

The Shaman nodded to show he accepted her apology. During the argument between the two heroes, Sindel had made a quick recovery. Her wounds had disappeared, and the Empress was more than capable of standing up now. Her memory had now returned to her, and she was glad to be with her daughters and former lover.

"Are you alright, My Queen?" Jade asked her. She was glaring at Kitana for harming their ally, but knew that the Princess did have a somewhat good reason for it. Even so, she should have had a less harmful approach to it, like Nightwolf said.

"Yes, Jade. Thank you," Sindel said. "Shao Kahn plans to have the souls of Earthrealm soldiers be used to create a Soulnado by Quan Chi. The Emperor is to be using those souls to strengthen him. If he uses those souls, his power will increase tenfold, and nobody will be able to stop him."

The moment that Sindel spoke of a Soulnado, Raiden had a vision of a swirling object composed of green energy being created in the Graveyard, and being absorbed by Shao Kahn. If that vision were to come to pass, Shao Kahn would be unstoppable.

"Very well. We must act quickly, then," the Thunder God began. He then turned to face Skarlet, Noob Saibot, Scorpion and Sub-Zero. Normally, Raiden would have chosen only two warriors to go on the mission, but this was a difficult objective. "You four must disrupt the Soulnado and throw a wench in Shao Kahn's plans. Scorpion and Sub-Zero, you two go to St Dominic's Clocktower. Skarlet and Noob Saibot, go to the Graveyard."

The four warriors nodded, but before they could go anywhere, Jax spoke up, "Hey, wait…take these." He threw four wrist-coms that they could use to relay messages to the Earthrealm heroes. They adjusted them on their wrists and teleported away. The four shinobis could not afford to be halted any longer.


	22. Stopping the Soulnado Part 1

_The Clocktower_

* * *

Scorpion and Sub-Zero had teleported to the Clocktower under the order of Raiden. The duo would convince the Outworld villains that Sub-Zero had jumped ship, and that both Kuai Liang and Hanzo Hasashi had been assigned to help prepare the Soulnado.

Inside the Clocktower stood Goro, Kintaro, and Kano, who were bullying the warriors. The soldiers were grounded and had metallic handcuffs that bounded every soldier. The bonds were constricted around the wrists of the mortals, and they were done so very tightly that it hurt the soldiers. As such, they were squirming around in pain and with the intent of trying to get free.

"Oi, run about will yer!" Kano mocked in response to the soldier's squirming. It was amusing to him that they were fidgeting in pain like pathetic humans would. The fact that Kano himself was a human hadn't even crossed his mind. The Black Dragon thug didn't even consider himself a human, for he was in the ranks of Shao Kahn. For that, Kano considered himself to be a survivor. An immortal warrior that could get through anything.

Scorpion and Sub-Zero decided to make their presence known by stepping forward and standing before the two soldiers at the front. Kano noticed both of them, "Finally, yer here!" But he also acknowledged that Sub-Zero was there. The Black Dragon thug knew that Sub-Zero was on the Forces of Light, so they were probably on some kind of undercover mission. "What's he doin' here?"

"Sub-Zero is on our side now, courtesy of Quan Chi. His brother's killer is actually a part of the Forces of Light. Quan Chi told him this, and that is why he does not side with them anymore. All these years I was believed to be his killer, but I am not, as you can see."

Kano continued on as though he hadn't heard a thing Scorpion told him, "Well, come on now. We gotta get 'em to the Graveyard."

"For what purpose?" Sub-Zero asked in a somewhat stupid voice. He knew what was to happen, but was playing dumb with his 'comrades.' It would have to be done, for Kuai Liang needed to act as though he was truly on Kano's side. So far, things were running smoothly.

Kano shrugged, "Don't care really. So long as I get paid." It was true. The Black Dragon thug was only helping Shao Kahn invade Earthrealm for his own personal gain. The Emperor would be offering Kano payment once the invasion had succeeded, due to Kano's cooperation and allegiance. The Black Dragon only hoped that the invasion plans would work.

There was a brief moment of silence that was broken by Kuai Liang, who shot a concentrated beam of ice at Kano and the two giants. The three villains were frozen solid, allowing the two shinobis to free the captured soldiers. Sub-Zero froze the chains and broke them with a powerful chop.

"Go! All of you! Now!"

The warriors didn't need to be told twice. They ran out of the Clocktower as though their lives depended on it. Well, in this case, their lives were dependent on how fast they were able to escape. The moment that the warriors had retreated, the ice that constricted Goro and Kintaro began to thaw out. The Shokan's hands moved, slightly removing the ice that coated their bodies like a blanket.

Scorpion and Sub-Zero looked at each other and nodded. The Deadly Alliance of a bodyguard and his client vs. two Shokans. Though the Shokans dwarfed the two shinobis, Hanzo Hasashi and Kuai Liang were much more skilled, as they were faster and more adept. The Shokans were strong, yet very, very slow.

Goro and Kintaro abruptly broke free from the cold bonds. "Your treachery will be punished!" The Tigrar-lineage Shokan roared. He breathed a beam of fire at Scorpion, which the demon ducked and retaliated with a leg-scissor trip. Having discerned that Kintaro was Scorpion's to fight, Sub-Zero decided to 'dance' with Goro.

The Shokan Royal laughed before shooting a green fireball at Sub-Zero, who deflected the projectile with a concentrated ice blast that Kuai Liang formed into an ice shield. The fireball bounced off the wall and hit Goro in the chest, knocking the Shokan over. The fireball had made a small slit in the spot that it had hit in the ice wall.

Goro got up and performed a jump stop, an attack the Shokans were infamous for. The shockwaves that the Royal's attack had created caused the ice wall that Kuai Liang created to shatter, as well as put the Cryomancer in a temporary daze. Using Kuai Liang's dazed state to his advantage, Goro blindly spun around at a speed alien to any Shokan. His fists hit Kuai Liang, who was knocked to the ground with a howl of pain.

Scorpion had the upper hand in his fight against Kintaro. The demon's adeptness and speed made it difficult for the Shokan to land any hits on the spectre. Hanzo knocked Kintaro to the ground with a powerful push kick to the Shokan's nose, and a satisfying _crack _sound could be heard throughout the room. The Tigrar, who had been severely weakened from the fight against Scorpion, was knocked unconscious by the push kick that the spectre delivered.

Goro was distracted by the _crack _sound, leaving him open to an attack. Sub-Zero noticed this and generated a kori sword. The weapon that Kuai Liang held was much longer than any other kori sword he had created, and it also looked much more powerful and dangerous than the others he had created. He ran through Goro, the kori sword in his hands. The Shokan warrior stood where he was, clutching his stomach. Goro bled from his chest and was coughing up blood profusely, before falling to the ground, dead. Scorpion then sliced off the heads of Goro, Kintaro, and Kano for good measure.

Kuai Liang then activated his wristcom to tell Raiden of his and Scorpion's progress. "This is Sub-Zero. Scorpion and I have defeated Goro, Kintaro and Kano, and rescued the soldiers they have kidnapped. What do you suggest we do now?"

Sonya, who had received Sub-Zero's message on her wristcom, had placed the device in front of Raiden so that the Thunder God could give the two shinobis instructions of what to do next. "Go to the Graveyard with Skarlet and Noob Saibot. They may need your help in disrupting the Soulnado."

Scorpion had finished burning alive the remains of Goro, Kintaro and Kano, and had heard what Raiden said. The demon looked at Sub-Zero, who replied to the Thunder God, "We are on our way there now. Sub-Zero out."

The two shinobis teleported to the Graveyard to assist Noob Saibot and Skarlet take down the Soulnado.

* * *

**-Sorry if I made Scorpion and Sub-Zero seem overpowered. Well, I'm not sorry for making Sub-Zero overpowered, as he's my favourite character :P **


	23. Stopping the Soulnado Part 2

The two shinobis had arrived at the Graveyard to find that the Soulnado looked almost complete. They also spotted Noob Saibot fighting Ermac, and Skarlet fighting Quan Chi. The two villains were covered in blood that was a mix of their opponents and their own, and looked incapable of holding their own. Skarlet and Noob Saibot had been fighting their opponents mercilessly. It was Skarlet's life mission to assassinate Quan Chi, and she would finally be able to do so now. The thought of finally, _finally _having his blood absorbed into her body after all of years desiring it excited her to no end.

Scorpion and Sub-Zero watched as the fight raged on. Noob Saibot had beat Ermac into submission and snapped the soul-construct's neck, whilst Skarlet had delivered a push-kick that sent Quan Chi staggering back. Scorpion knew that the sorcerer was going to die, and with what Noob Saibot had previously informed him with, the spectre wanted nothing more than to be the one to kill Quan Chi. Scorpion wanted to avenge the deaths of his family and clan, and he was going to do just that.

The demon acted on what he desired most and teleported in front of Quan Chi. Scorpion's eyes had anger written all over them, as did his hard-as-steel gaze that pierced through his former master. The spectre did not feel anything, nor did he have to worry about his soul having blood on it. He was already damned, so what did it matter?

Quan Chi was ridden with fear. The demon had somehow found out the truth behind the events of the Shirai Ryu. Ermac had died, and Noob Saibot had joined Raiden's forces, so there was nobody to help him. Skarlet had weakened the demon sorcerer, so he couldn't use his powers without blacking out. He was _doomed_.

Quan Chi was then lifted up by Scorpion, the spectre's fingers wrapped tightly around his former master's throat. Scorpion looked at his former ally once last time before unsheathing his sword and slashing twice at the sorcerer's chest, the wounds forming an 'X' shape. Scorpion then mustered enough strength to throw the demon sorcerer into the Soulnado, which seemed to pull Quan Chi into it once the sorcerer had gotten close to it.

The Soulnado's green colour was replaced with an impure shade of black, which enveloped the entire Soulnado. The now-black swirling energy vortex spun around for the last time before disintegrating. The Soulnado's destruction caused gravestones to topple over and trees to be ripped apart. Sub-Zero created an ice wall to protect his allies from the destruction, which he was successful in doing.

The Soulnado had now been stopped, but Shao Kahn was still active. His conquest for Earthrealm hadn't ended yet. But the four shinobis couldn't do anything about that unless instructed to by Raiden. Sub-Zero activated his wristcom and spoke into it.

"This is Sub-Zero. The Soulnado has been destroyed. Quan Chi has been killed by Scorpion. Earthrealm's souls are safe. Do you want us to report back to the Cathedral, Lord Raiden?"

"Yes. You must hurry, for Shao Kahn is coming to Earthrealm soon. All of us need to think of a plan before making a pre-emptive strike."

"We are on our way. Sub-Zero out."

Kuai Liang was about to face his comrades when a huge blanket of yellow light enveloped Scorpion. The light grew brighter and brighter to the point that Skarlet, Sub-Zero, and Noob Saibot had to cover their eyes to prevent blindness. Scorpion's groans and howls of pain rung throughout the Graveyard as the light enveloped him. Skarlet and Sub-Zero were confused about what was happening to the man, whereas Noob Saibot had a somewhat clear understanding. Since Scorpion had avenged his family and clan by murdering Quan Chi, his soul could finally rest, and he could be a human again. The yellow light that enveloped him was slowly turning Hanzo back into the human he once was.

Sometime later, the disturbance cleared, and in front of Skarlet, Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot stood a tan-skinned man wearing his traditional uniform, without a mask. He had long, brown hair and chocolate brown eyes that seemed to suit him. The man was handsome, but that in itself was an understatement.

"Scorpion?"

* * *

_Outworld_

Shao Kahn's stupor had abruptly ended when he could no longer feel the Soulnado. Nor could he sense the presences of Ermac or Quan Chi in the Graveyard. He was using his magic to keep track of what was happening in the Graveyard regarding the Soulnado. But what the Emperor could see was something he was not entirely surprised to see.

Standing in the Graveyard was Noob Saibot, Skarlet, Sub-Zero and Scorpion. But Scorpion was no longer the spectre that he was whilst under Quan Chi's order. Scorpion was now human, but seemed to have preserved his fire powers, albeit the fire wasn't hellfire, it was just regular fire that Liu Kang possessed. The Emperor had anticipated the betrayal of Skarlet, for she had prevented the automation of Sub-Zero during the 10th tournament hosted in Outworld. Shao Kahn remembered that day, clearer than crystal.

The warlord could also sense that Sindel had jumped ship, most likely due to Kitana's convincing, and possibly Jade's. The Emperor was losing warriors by the minute. Kano, Kintaro, Goro, Quan Chi, Cyrax, Sektor, and Ermac had died. Skarlet, Sindel, Noob Saibot, Scorpion, Kitana and Jade had defected. The only warriors that had not jumped ship or died were Sheeva, Mileena, Baraka, Reptile, Reiko, Tanya, and Rain. At times like this, Shao Kahn wished that he hadn't killed Shang Tsung. But then how would he have empowered Sindel? That Soulnado probably should have been made for her and not for him. But that didn't matter now, for Sindel had jumped ship and was no longer aligned with the Emperor's forces. He would enjoy capturing her and making her his concubine, regardless of whether or not she desired it or not.

Since Sindel had been resurrected, he could now enter Earthrealm without a qualm. The Emperor decided to do as such, conjuring a portal to the world that would soon be his. Shao Kahn hastily entered it and found himself standing on a rooftop that overlooked the destruction that littered the streets below.

As Shao Kahn idly stood on the rooftop, he noticed that parts of his Throneroom was appearing on the rooftop, such as his Throne and a portal that could take someone anywhere they desired. The swirling grey vortex looked frivolous, for the realms had not entirely merged.

The Emperor then realised that his presence in Earthrealm was slowly merging it with Outworld. This was fantastic! He could do nothing but sit on his Throne and have the two realms merge. His dream was finally coming to reality.

* * *

**-Well, shit. I'm saying that for two reasons: Shao Kahn has nearly merged Earthrealm with Outworld, and this fanfic has only one or two more chapters before it's over. I've really enjoyed writing this story, and I hoped that you've enjoyed reading it. **


	24. Plight

**-I know that I said that Rebellion would be updated this weekend, but I didn't have a lot of homework tonight, and I was bored, thus I felt like updating. I hope you enjoy this chapter.**

* * *

Skarlet, Sub-Zero, Noob Saibot, and a now-human Scorpion returned from the Graveyard in one piece and arrived at the Cathedral to find their allies standing around the abandoned church in groups. Kitana was standing with Sindel and Jade. Liu Kang stood with Raiden, Nightwolf, and Kung Lao. Johnny Cage stood with Jax, Sonya Blade, Stryker and Kabal. The Earthrealm heroes seemed to be discussing random topics amongst themselves, but the ongoing conversations meant nothing to the four shinobis. They had just returned from destroying a Soulnado, so shouldn't they be the centre of attention? It would make Johnny Cage jealous, but not that anyone cared.

The Thunder God's attention abruptly shifted from the allies he was conversing with to that of Skarlet, Noob Saibot, Sub-Zero, and a now-human Scorpion. Raiden's eyes squinted as he looked at the yellow-clad ninja as he tried to figure out who the man was. It occurred to the deity that the brown-haired man was indeed Scorpion. The deity was curious as to how Hanzo had regained his humanity, but he would save those questions for later.

"Kuai Liang! Bi-Han!" Smoke called out. The grey-haired man was happy to see his brothers. The Enenra wondered who the yellow-clad man was that stood next to the Lin Kuei brothers. Tomas knew that Scorpion usually dressed like that, but the spectre always wore a mask to hide his true face – a flaming skull. The vapour-demon was clueless as to who this person could be, unless it was truly Scorpion, and the demon had just regained his humanity through some kind of sorcery. But his attention was not focused on who the yellow-clad man was. His attention was focused on his allies, Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot.

"Earthrealm's souls are safe, Lord Raiden," Noob Saibot replied as he approached his allies, all of which were now standing around the altar again. The revenant was sick of Shao Kahn's regime. He just wanted to be with his beloved Skarlet, and eventually move away to somewhere peaceful, and start over with his lover and Smoke and Kuai Liang, his brothers by blood and by oath. Either way, Bi-Han considered the grey-haired man as another brother. And the man he once hated the most was now beginning to become his friend. _Plot twist? _"Quan Chi is no longer counted amongst the living. He was killed by Scorpion during battle."

_This makes sense as to how Scorpion is now a human_, the Thunder God thought to himself. He did not know that the Netherrealm sorcerer could be killed by a Soulnado, but the purity of the spell could easily tear Quan Chi apart. The demon sorcerer's soul was heavily tainted with corruption from all of the deceit and killing he was involved in, so it was no wonder as to why he was killed by a Soulnado.

"I am forever grateful for your efforts," Raiden spoke, addressing the four heroes that stopped the Soulnado, "But our work has not even gotten close to being finished. Shao Kahn is in Earthrealm as we speak. His presence in our world is slowly merging it with Outworld. I must speak with the Elder Gods. Shao Kahn's violation must be punished!"

The deity's voice raised significantly as he spoke the last sentence; his voice became very sharp, deep, and loud. Though his words were not insulting, everybody felt like two cents for some reason. But they were clinging on to whatever hope they had left, for this could be the last time they ever saw each other again. Shao Kahn's conquest in Earthrealm could kill all of them if they were not careful.

Skarlet could not bare to lose Bi-Han, or the new friends she had made from her life in Outworld and the tournaments, such as Kitana, Jade, Sub-Zero and Smoke. She had not spoken to a lot of the other Earthrealm heroes, but did not think poorly of them. Noob Saibot could not bare to lose her either, nor could he bare to lose his brothers. He already had his entire life stolen from him once; he didn't need it again. The wraith found himself not wanting to have Scorpion die again either. _What the hell?!_

The rest of the heroes didn't want anyone that fought alongside them to die. Jade did not want Kuai Liang to die out of all people, nor did Kitana want Smoke to die of all people. Though they cared for a lot of people, the two women loved Sub-Zero and Smoke, respectively. They could not bare to see the men that their hearts yearned for to be ripped away from life.

"But the battle is joined here, in Earthrealm," Liu Kang said in a calm tone, trying to reason with Raiden and his desired course of actions. He was confident in Raiden's decisions, for the Thunder God often made the right choices. But the Shaolin Monk did not want things to take the wrong turn. Things were already bad, but then again, how worse could things get? Liu Kang would be kidding himself if he didn't think that things would be getting worse. He'd be an idiot to think as such.

"We cannot win without the Elder Gods, Liu Kang."

"But Master-"

The actor suddenly cut in. "Liu Kang! Close as a shadow…" Johnny remarked playfully. He was only joking, but the Monk must have taken it seriously, as Liu Kang was glowering at the actor. Liu Kang was already in a bad mood, and the actor's stupid remarks were only making things worse.

"Sindel, you are in charge until we return," Raiden said to his once- lover. The white-haired woman could have sworn that the deity had winked at her, but such an action would be too crude of the Thunder God. She brushed her thoughts aside and immediately went into 'Queen Mode'.

"As you wish, Lord Raiden," the Edenian said, accepting her new position. She could not stop thinking about the 'wink' that Raiden shot at her. Sindel then remembered the time of them being lovers. They had been a couple for quite some time until Sindel was forced to break up with Raiden, due to him not being able to wed her because of his Godly-status. Sindel understood this completely, but could not truly get over Raiden. He was her _everything_.

And now that Jerrod was dead, the Edenian Queen could move on and have Raiden all for herself. But Sindel was worried that Jerrod would come back to haunt her once she had gotten back together with the deity. However, in the back of the woman's mind, she knew that Jerrod would want her to move on. He'd want that more than anything.

* * *

_The Heavens_

Raiden and Liu Kang had teleported from the Cathedral in Earthrealm to Heaven, the place where the Elder Gods resided. They could be spoken to by people who infiltrated the area. The Heavens were a plain location that seemed to be higher than the clouds. A small Temple-like area was where Raiden and Liu Kang stood. Several pillars encased the area and there was no roof. Several constellations and other planets could be seen, albeit not very clearly.

"Elder Gods, I beseech you! Shao Kahn invades Earthrealm as we speak!"

"**We are aware of your plight, Raiden**," the Elder Gods said as they appeared. Five deities appeared as they spoke to their allies. "**But it is the merger that is prescribed. Invasion itself is not a direct penalty**."

_How can this be? Shao Kahn is merging the realms whilst invading! _

"A distinction without a difference! Please, can't you intervene on Earthrealm's behalf?"

"**Unfortunately, no. We cannot interfere in mortal affairs unless a violation of Mortal Kombat rules occurs."**

"Please…you must-"

"**We have spoken."** The deities said before disappearing.

Liu Kang turned to face Raiden, "The last doors are closing. We are nearly trapped." The deities face was ridden with fear and hurt. Raiden was upset that they could not do anything except come up with some kind of ludicrous idea to defeat Shao Kahn. But he knew that many lives would be lost if he did so.

* * *

**-More chapters will be included in this story. After the main events of this story I will be elaborating on Skarlet's new life. **

**-Yes, Jade/Sub-Zero will be a pairing in this story, as will Kitana/Smoke. I know they're odd, but it's my story, so I'm allowed to have whatever pairings I like **

**-Thanks for reading. Will update as soon as I can. **


	25. We Are Nearly Trapped

**-Thought I'd be funny for once and give you a link to some funny YouTube vids. If you find them offensive in any way, I apologise for I do not mean for them to be. Nonetheless, enjoy the videos and the chapter!**

watch?v=1qPG7NqMRD4

watch?v=ub0GzU56YMA

watch?v=2T_obaO46Bo

* * *

"The last doors are closing. We are nearly trapped." Raiden's voice was ridden in horror and his words sounded as though he had given up on the last bit of hope that he had. The deity was slowly losing hope from the time the tournament had started in Outworld several days ago, and at this point, there was very little left of the 'hope' Raiden had. It was fictitious to the Thunder God, mythical, completely consumed, non-existent, extinct, wiped out. But all in all, the Thunder God was grateful that his comrades had hope, such as Liu Kang and Kitana. Those two warriors seemed to never lose hope, besides having outbursts of anger at times. But they never were negative; at no point at all did they give up on hope. And Raiden was thankful for that, because if the rest of his warriors weren't optimistic as well, then the Thunder God was sure that he'd resort to some ridiculous measure to cope with his grief. And he wouldn't – couldn't – be known for that. He was supposed to be a hero, so for letting his emotions have such an effect on him would be shameful. Raiden was supposed to be Earthrealm's protector God, so failing to save his realm from any perils it was faced with was not any ordinary mistake. It was a mistake that no God could make. Not even the mortals that Raiden aligned himself with would let such a thing happen.

Liu Kang and Raiden teleported back from Heaven to the Cathedral, to find the warriors in the same positions as they were before. The mortals were spread around the altar. No words left their lips about their upcoming plans, but the warriors standing next to each other seemed to be talking amongst themselves. Kitana, Jade, and Skarlet were holding hands with the males standing next to them – Smoke, Sub-Zero and Noob Saibot. The Edenian Princess and her bodyguard had subconsciously gripped the hands of the males standing next to them, their affections for the renegade assassins taking it's toll on them. The two assassins looked at the females, heavily blushing before breaking out into a dazzling smile, their eyes twinkling adorably. It was not long before the males returned the grip of Kitana and Jade respectively.

Raiden and Liu Kang headed to the altar to regroup with their allies. The Earthrealm warriors could tell that they had not succeeded in their quest to try and enlist the help of the Elder Gods, for the Heaven-residing deities could not directly engage in mortal affairs. Nor could they unfairly punish someone for their crimes. Shao Kahn had not violated their will as of yet, so they could not do anything. Sindel saw the look of despair on Raiden's face, which made her upset. She wanted to do something – anything – to make him feel better. She wanted to run away with him and just get away from all of this madness. But the Empress knew that Shao Kahn would indeed have to be eliminated. There was no way that they could live a peaceful life together without eliminating the warlord that was the very root of their problems, time and time again. He had made Edenia suffer, and the Edenian woman did not want Earthrealm to suffer as her native realm had. She couldn't. Not if she was to make this realm her new home. Edenia was nothing but Wastelands now; it would take several millennia to _completely _restore the Royal Realm to it's former glory. Sindel was an impatient woman, so she definitely wouldn't like to wait so long to have her home back to normal. Besides, she had everything in Earthrealm. A lover, her friends, a peaceful life free of worry, the list could go on and on…

"Lord Raiden, what is wrong?" Skarlet asked. The red assassin knew what had happened, but she did not like the silence in the room, and had asked the question in order to create conversation. The hemomancer knew that she had come a long way from the days that she hated talking to now being the very definition of a chatterbox. She talked when it wasn't necessary, when she wasn't spoken to first, when nobody asked her, or to simply create conversation. It was as though talking was a new toy for Skarlet, a toy that she was obsessed with and couldn't put down for five seconds before playing with it again.

"The Elder Gods cannot help us on our quest. We must fight Shao Kahn in Mortal Kombat to save Earthrealm. The Elder Gods do not see the Emperor's actions as something to penalise. It disappoints me that they do not share my point of view on this, but there is nothing I can do. It pains me to say this, but some of us may lose one another, and we may not be successful in saving our realm."

His words were pained and pierced through the warriors like a sword. The words seemed sharp enough to cut through the warrior's bodies, severing them at the waist and even dissecting some of them. They could imagine their sliced bodies falling to the ground, bleeding profusely, as a result of Raiden's words. Never had they been affected by words in such a way like this. Their feelings were alien compared to past ones. It had never hurt them so much before to hear Raiden say those words. How could the Thunder God have lost hope in such a situation where hope and optimism were something like a prerequisite to be a part of the situation? It seemed as though he had lost all hope and wouldn't be becoming more hopeful and optimistic any time soon…

But the heroes wouldn't give up. Not now. They had come too far to do so. It would be like climbing a mountain and reaching the halfway point of it, but then deciding to climb back down. Their efforts would be wasted on such an important task that they would surely fail and possibly be damned if they were to give up now.

They had come a long way from the start of the 9th tournament in Outworld.

They'd come too far to give up now.

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**-I know, I was going to have this be the last chapter of the main story, but I decided to make this a filler chapter with a cliff-hanger ending just to piss you readers off… Because I love you enough to do that. **** Man, this could be the longest story I ever write. **

**-I am grateful to all who had reviewed this story so far. CryoManceR, BleedingHeartsoftheWorldUnite, Cold Recluse, Masterdragon1, mkfreak123, A Brick Wall and the guest reviewers, thank you for making this the second most reviewed story I've written! All of you rock. **


	26. Grimace

**-As for those videos in the last chapter, I was just trying to lighten things up for things could be getting a little emotional soon… I'm sorry if they weren't funny. Please tell me if they weren't. **

_Rooftop_

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Shao Kahn sat on the Throne that have appeared on the rooftop due to the merging. The Emperor's presence in Earthrealm caused it to merge with Outworld due to his sorcery. With each minute passing, more and more of his Throneroom was appearing on the rooftop, and the merging was almost complete. Shao Kahn could even _feel_ the two worlds merging as one. But he knew that Raiden and his underlings would be showing up, no doubt about that. The Thunder Dog and his heroes were always there to 'thwart' his plans, but they never seemed to fully comprehend that the Emperor would always be back for more, no doubt about that. By the end of all this, Earthrealm would be nothing more than another part of Outworld. The thought of this made Shao Kahn smirk to himself in satisfaction. He had been fighting to claim Earthrealm for several years. All of those years it took for him to claim Earthrealm would finally be worth it…

With a flash of bright blue lightning, Raiden and his underlings appeared on the rooftop, standing before Shao Kahn, looking deadly and as pissed as ever. It was like they had faced a milestone in their life that completely shattered their lives to pieces, all of which could never be put back together, like an unfixable puzzle. But in truth, they were all just angry at Shao Kahn was a persistent bastard and was trying to claim something he would never have.

On the left of Raiden stood Kitana, Jade, Skarlet, Sindel, and Sonya Blade. On the right of the Thunder God stood Smoke, Sub-Zero, Noob Saibot, Liu Kang, Kung Lao, Scorpion, Jax, Johnny Cage, Stryker and Kabal. The Emperor's orange, cat-like eyes raked over the heroes and saw that some of them were once under his command, or at least were aligned with him at some point. Noob Saibot was among those warriors, as was Scorpion, Kitana, Jade, Sindel and Skarlet. Sub-Zero could have been an addition to his army, perhaps even his extermination squad, but all chances of that were ruined by Skarlet. The young tracker had killed the cyborgs that were to take Kuai Liang away for automation. Once that process was complete, the Cryomancer would be put under slaving protocols that would completely erase his memories and have him be devout to the Emperor and the Lin Kuei. As such, he would complete tasks for both parties without question. His allies were glad that he wasn't automated, but even so, Shao Kahn still could use chance to capture Sub-Zero and bring him back for automation.

Something else he would need to do would be to capture Sindel and force her into being his once again… That would be easy. Well, not quite, actually. The Emperor remembered that the sorcerer who resurrected her had been killed by Scorpion, who had killed his master after finding out what had _truly _happened to his family and clan, courtesy of Noob Saibot. But then again, Shao Kahn's sorcery was much more powerful than Quan Chi's, so the Emperor could use his magic to put Sindel under his command…That is, if he were to successfully capture her, considering the fact that he was significantly outnumbered by his enemies. But Shao Kahn was stronger than all of them, so he could take them out, one by one, and complete all of the self-set objectives. It would be like killing two birds with one stone.

"So, my greatest warriors have decided to join the Thunder Dog and embrace his pathetic cause. Unbelievable…" the Emperor said, loud enough for Raiden and his allies to here. They were all angry at the degrading comment Shao Kahn made, but could pay him back for it when they were to do battle.

The Thunder God's hands started to light up with electricity, and from it, sounds as loud as thunder could be heard. It was like Raiden's strength had been increased by some kind of aspect known to nobody, not even the deity himself. But nonetheless, his newfound strength would be useful in defeating Shao Kahn and saving the realm from the havoc that the Emperor had brought about.

As Raiden pondered the Emperor's defeat, the deity wondered what would happen to Shao Kahn after his defeat. Would the Elder Gods finally act?! The Thunder God had noticed that many remnants of Shao Kahn's Throne in his Outworld Fortress were appearing on the Rooftop, a sign that the merging was taking place. Raiden knew that the quicker he defeated the Emperor, the quicker he could undo the effects of the merging. He needed the merging's scars to be undone and he needed it undone _now_.

_Without further ado, _he thought, "ATTACK!" The Thunder God spontaneously barked out. As though under some kind of trance, he and the Earthrealm heroes charged at Shao Kahn, all of them letting out a blood-curdling roar that depicted fury. Shao Kahn simply stood there, unfazed by the transpiring events. The warriors attacked blindly and their hits did not do anything to the Emperor. He just stood there, unfazed. It was like their hits hadn't connected at all.

With a raise of his hand, a powerful wall of green energy was released, which sent the warriors flying back, landing head first. Hisses of pains found their way out of every warrior that was harmed by the knock-back effect of the energy wall. Raiden, the only one who hadn't been affected by the energy wall, decided to take matters into his own hands. He needed to pretend that further resistance would serve no purpose, and put on a façade that he would be giving up entirely, and allow Shao Kahn to take Earthrealm for himself.

But the Thunder God knew that once he had 'surrendered' to the Emperor, that he would be beaten into submission, just like he was by Shao Kahn atop the Pyramid of Argus during the Final Battle of Armageddon. The same beating would be making it's way towards Raiden again, but the visions showed Raiden survive the assault and eventually be empowered by the Elder Gods. With their help, he could defeat Shao Kahn and save Earthrealm from the ongoing merging that seemed to be happening at a much quicker rate than it was before…

Raiden would have to act now. The rooftop was beginning to look more and more like Shao Kahn's Throneroom. The floor was now a golden colour and had a picture of the Emperor in the middle. On the left and right hand sides were pillars. Shao Kahn was smiling, but Raiden was grimacing.

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**-I'm really, really sorry for not making this the last chapter of the main story, but I'm trying not to rush things is all! **


	27. The Fall of Shao Kahn

**-Okay, no more cliffhangers. I promise.**

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Raiden acted upon his visions of what would happen shortly once he submitted to Shao Kahn. The deity was also acting on the adrenaline, energy, and determination he had to undo the scars of the merging that was brought about by Shao Kahn. The sooner that the Emperor was defeated, the sooner the realms of Earthrealm and Outworld would be unmerged. And then, everyone would be able to live peacefully, for a villain would be eliminated.

The Thunder God calmly approached Shao Kahn. His face was ridden with sadness, but all in all it was truly a façade that was carefully concealed by his action of surrender. Raiden hoped that the Emperor would truly fall for it, as if he didn't, his plans would be ruined. It wasn't like the deity had come up with a back up plan of any sort, so he hoped that this would work.

Once he was directly in front of the Emperor, Raiden bowed. Shao Kahn's eyes raked over the deity and could see no signs of deceit in his actions. But then again, the Emperor couldn't see the Thunder God's face, so he couldn't hold his breath on that. But Raiden was not one to deceive his opponents, for he was too good-natured. Little did Shao Kahn know that Raiden was doing exactly that.

"Ah Raiden, you have come to your senses," the Emperor remarked, his voice coated with mockery. He was truly glad, however, that Raiden had given up on his hopeless quest to try and save Earthrealm. The merging was almost done at this point, and soon, the unearthly creatures that ran around Outworld like headless chickens would be released into the realm and send it into a state of further destruction. Buildings were tipped over, roads were cut in half, some buildings were on fire, and the clouds were dark. Earthrealm truly _was _being claimed.

"Earthrealm's citizens suffer. Further resistance serves no purpose."

The Emperor chuckled heartily at Raiden's claim. He could not believe that after all of these years of defiance and fighting back against Shao Kahn in past times for Earthrealm's safety, was finally giving up. But why? The deity had never once showed signs of giving up at all. Never. Not once did he express the desire to give up. Shao Kahn could immediately tell something was fishy about this situation.

But that didn't matter, for he would kill the Thunder God during the last battle that the deity would have. That battle was now, so the Emperor was desperately trying to make haste, so that he could finally, _finally_, complete his life goal; eliminate the Thunder Dog and his underlings, and then claim Earthrealm, a task that seemed to have taken countless millennia.

"All these ages you have fought me. Denied me my rightful claim. Not this time."

The Emperor then violently grabbed Raiden by the throat, his massive hand coiling around the deity's throat like a Boa Constrictor. He choked the Thunder God for a few seconds before tossing him across the rooftop, the deity landing with a loud wince and a _thud _that was equally loud. The impact of Raiden's landing created a massive crack in the rooftop. It would seem that from the impact, that if you stepped on the crack was, you would fall through it without a doubt.

As Raiden fell to the ground, he suddenly had a vision of how he was thrown across the Pyramid of Argus by Shao Kahn. The Raiden at that point of time was corrupted by Onaga's evil essence as a result of the Thunder God committing suicide to try and stop the Dragon King. His essence corrupted the deity's soul, causing Raiden to be brought back to life with a tainted soul.

"Elder Gods…why do you forsake me…" Raiden wheezed out in a voice that purely depicted pain and suffering. His warriors were still unconscious from the brutal attack Shao Kahn sent their way, and they didn't seem to be regaining consciousness any time soon. Raiden was helpless, and there was nobody there to catch him. Not even the Elder Gods.

But then before Raiden could think any further, the Emperor brutally stomped on the deity's chest, causing the Thunder God to cough up blood. The red, crimson fluid splattered on Shao Kahn's foot and some of it was on the deity's chest. "Where are the Elder Gods, Raiden? They masquerade as dragons, but are mere toothless worms." Shao Kahn grabbed Raiden by the throat and proceeded to punch him in the face several times, the deity's face snapping from side to side due to the pain.

The Thunder God could see stars in his vision, and his eyes felt heavy. A massive headache was growing and Raiden felt nauseous. The deity knew that he would soon be slipping into a state of unconsciousness soon, and he knew that his plans would fail. Again. Like always. But that was nothing new to the deity, for whenever he was faced with an adversary like Shao Kahn, a problem always arose in his plans. There would never not be a conflict regarding his strategy to take down the adversary.

But even in his darkest hour, Raiden started to feel hope build up in him. He could see some of his comrades regaining consciousness, such as Skarlet, Kitana, Jade, Kung Lao, Liu Kang, Noob Saibot, Sub-Zero and Smoke. The others were still unconscious, but that didn't matter for now, as some of the deity's allies were now awake and able to fight Shao Kahn and assist Raiden. But the deity wasn't so sure that they would still be able to fight the Emperor and survive, for they still looked a little woozy. The Thunder God was sure that they still felt weak and were not in shape enough to fight the Emperor and survive. But it would be a risk he'd have to take.

Shao Kahn was about to throw Raiden across the rooftop, but his assault was paused, as the Emperor was sent toppling to the ground after being hit with a powerful, red projectile that came from none other than Skarlet. The hemomancer had learnt to pull off this attack without feeling woozy afterward, like how she felt when she first learnt to do the attack. The blood-composed projectile was very strong and could send even the likes of Shao Kahn toppling to the ground. The sexy tracker was very proud of herself, and inwardly congratulated herself. Her happy thoughts were halted when she saw that Shao Kahn had gotten up, and the look on his face was frightening. He had never given _anyone _besides Rain that look, and that was when the Hydromancer had claimed Skarlet and harmed her when the Emperor commanded him not do so in any way, shape or form. The hemomancer knew she was in deep shit now, but she was not alone.

"It disappoints me to see you here," the Emperor told her in a sincere voice. He had once told Skarlet that she was his greatest warrior, and that she was to eliminate anyone that plotted betrayal to him or planned to bring ruin to Outworld. Seeing her side with Raiden and his underlings cut him deep. He didn't create her to defect from him, nor did he desire for her to join the person he hated the most. Outworld's ruler did not mind that Kitana and Jade had defected, for in his eyes, they weren't as good warriors as Skarlet was. Sure, they were highly capable of performing his tasks, but they were nowhere near as powerful as the sexy assassin was. The Edenian kunoichis did not have any powers, whereas Skarlet did. And that was what truly made her skills unique in contrast to the skills of Kitana and Jade.

"Right," Skarlet said in reply. She spoke in a nonchalant voice, not caring for the Emperor's feelings. The sexy tracker just wanted him dead. Gone. Eliminated. To be defeated, once and for all. The red assassin was truly sick of how he only cared for power and having enforcers at his side. She knew that if she wasn't an enforcer of his, that the Emperor wouldn't care for her defection. But since the hemomancer did work for him, as his personal assassin, Shao Kahn did feel upset that she was no longer on his side. He was selfish to feel that. It was truly up to her as to what side she chose.

Whilst the Emperor was distracted as he was trying to think of something to say to Skarlet, bright flashes of energy suddenly appeared in different spots on the rooftop. From the clouds came five dragons that were small in size, golden in colour, and were flying towards Raiden at a fast rate, faster than any dragon the deity had seen in his lifetime. The dragons approached the Thunder God and each of them flew around his body, their essence being infused into him. Bright light shone around Raiden as the dragons released their essence into him, strengthening and healing the deity. The Thunder God had never felt more powerful before. The feeling was alien to him. Out of this world. Extra-terrestrial. Once-in-a-lifetime. Either way, Raiden _could _get used to this.

He teleported in front of Shao Kahn, and turned to face the warlord. "You violate our will, Shao Kahn. You merge realms without victory in Mortal Kombat. Our penalty is clear." The deity's voice was monotone and even deeper than it usually was. It became clear to everyone that the dragons were in fact the Elder Gods, and had released their essence into Raiden to strengthen him in order to defeat Shao Kahn and save Earthrealm. They had _finally _acted, something they could have done long before this invasion madness had even begun.

Raiden shot a concentrated energy blast at Shao Kahn, which hit the Emperor in the chest. The attack lingered for quite some time, but the warlord was unfazed. It clearly did not do any harm upon him; the Emperor simply stood there and laughed as he was attacked. He was also laughing at Raiden's anaemic efforts, as well as that of the Elder Gods. _Weak pathetic fools_.

Once the energy blast had dissipated, Shao Kahn spoke. It was time to end things. He could not stand being interrupted in his quest to have Earthrealm merge with Outworld any longer. The Outworld warlord could tell that the realms were slowly unmerging due to the Elder God's presence in Raiden's body. The pillars on the side of the rooftop had disintegrated, and it would only be a matter of time before the Throne had disintegrated, and the realms would have no potential to merge whatsoever. Shao Kahn would need to defeat Raiden and kill the Thunder Dog before he could continue with his plans. And then, of course, he could continue with his side-missions. But they weren't as important as the mission that involved merging Earthrealm with Outworld.

"An anaemic effort from ineffectual deities! Today, I become _the Elder God_!"

"Not a chance!" Raiden barked, his voice still the same as when he had spoke before. The deity then flew at Shao Kahn, his hands infused with powerful electricity energy that glowed blue. The attack was like a flying tackle that sent Shao Kahn to the ground, albeit the Emperor felt no pain at all. He quickly regained his footing and tossed his hammer at Raiden, the projectile hitting the deity in the face, knocking the Thunder God to the ground with a loud scream of pain.

Noob Saibot cringed at the attack Shao Kahn dealt. He knew that he could not directly interfere with the ongoing fight, so it was time to have Saibot do some dancing. The black-clad revenant summoned the shadow clone, who looked at his 'other half' and nodded, before charged towards Shao Kahn and delivering a flurry of punches to him from behind. The attacks were surprisingly dealing a lot of damage.

Saibot delivered a few more attacks before returning to his 'other half'. The clone was too fast for Shao Kahn, who could not land a hit on the demonic entity. With Shao Kahn weakened, it was now time for the finale. All of the Earthrealm warriors had regained their consciousness and could assist Raiden in defeating Shao Kahn. They had no problem with that.

Kitana, Jade, and Sindel attacked Shao Kahn with a flurry of kicks, slashes, punches, swipes, and stabs. The Emperor managed to regain his footing and send them staggering back with hammer attacks and brutal shoulder charges. Even in his weakened state, the Outworld warlord managed to send the three women toppling to the ground with ease.

Sonya, Johnny Cage, and Jax were up next. The lieutenant attacked Shao Kahn with her kiss; she released a purple energy from her mouth that sent him into a coughing fury like how perfume would. Jax and Johnny used this opportunity to land a series of punches and kicks in. But like Kitana, Jade, and Sindel, the Emperor still managed to defeat the three warriors with ease.

Next up was Kabal and Stryker, alongside Scorpion, Kung Lao, Liu Kang, and the two renegade Lin Kuei, Smoke and Sub-Zero. The six men were close in defeating Shao Kahn, but all it took was one energy shield to knock the warriors back to defeat them. It was now up to Raiden, Skarlet, and Noob Saibot.

Noob Saibot decided to get his shadow clone involved, as the demonic entity was more than capable of weakening the Emperor. He did a good job at it, as the other warriors were able to come very close to defeating him. But it was obvious that Shao Kahn was clinging to the last bouts of strength he had left, for he was still able to defeat the warriors that challenged him.

Skarlet charged at Shao Kahn, letting out a bloodcurdling scream as she teleported behind her once-master and dug her swords deep into his shoulders, causing blood to pour out from his shoulders and land on her skin. The hemomancer absorbed his immense strength and felt energized by the blood. She felt stronger than she had ever felt.

The red assassin's movements went _kick, slash, slash, punch, uppercut_. She chose her attacks carefully to work with Saibot, the shadow clone that her lover was able to manipulate, and before long, the Emperor was unable to continue. He had managed to get some hits in on Skarlet, but her movements eventually became too fast and her attacks too strong. Shao Kahn wasn't able to match her blows.

The hemomancer decided to be generous and let Raiden finish off Shao Kahn. The Thunder God looked to be itching to do some dancing, and seemed a little jealous that Skarlet and Saibot were the ones doing all the fighting. But he would now have his turn.

The deity shot a powerful blast of lightning at the warlord. The blast was blue and concentrated, and seemed to put the Outworld Emperor under a temporary daze. Raiden used this to his advantage by teleporting behind Shao Kahn and delivering a brutal elbow to his back; a satisfying crack could be heard, a rather satisfying sound to some of the heroes. He then continued his assault by teleporting in front of the deity and delivering a brutal karate chop to the Emperor's head. Raiden ended the combo with a blast of electricity, one that sent Shao Kahn flying back a few metres.

When the Emperor had finally regained his footing, the dragons escaped Raiden's body and hastily flew towards Shao Kahn. The dragons dug their teeth into the Emperor's flesh and ate away at the skin and open wounds that covered his body. Copious amounts of blood dripped from the wounds that painted his body. It was like they were tattoos, all over his wounded husk, that would never go away. The dragons continued feasting on the warlord before the warlord's body violently burst, his blood and guts littering where he once stood, some of his remains even reaching where the Earthrealm heroes stood.

As if on cue, the sky turned from black to blue, and all of the Outworld invasion aspects disappeared, their bodies disintegrating but not dying, instead returning back to their own world. Raiden's amulet mended itself, and the destruction and ruin that littered Earthrealm in every corner started to undo itself. The realm that Raiden loved dearly was back to it's original state. He and the heroes wouldn't have it any other way.

"It is over. Shao Kahn is dead. The future has been changed."

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**EPILOGUE**

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**Shao Kahn was dead. Shang Tsung and Quan Chi were counted amongst the deceased, as were Cyrax, Motaro, Sektor, Ermac, Goro, Kintaro, and Kano. The realms had maintained balance for a long time since the defeat of the Emperor.**

**Sheeva, Mileena, Rain, Tanya, Reptile, and Baraka were what remained of Shao Kahn's Forces. With nobody to serve, and nothing to do, they decided to part ways. Sheeva and the Shokan warriors migrated to Earthrealm to start a new life. Mileena decided to make amends with Kitana, as the animosity that the clone felt for her sister had diminished. Mileena and Scorpion had hit it off from the time they'd met. **

**Rain and Tanya decided to move back to Edenia, their native realm, and keep a low profile. Their desire for power had diminished, for they had realized that power was not something that could easily be gained, and neither of them were prepared to go through what Shao Kahn went through. Baraka stayed in Outworld with his Tarkata Militia, and Reptile had moved back to Earthrealm with his mate, Khameleon, a fellow Saurian.**

**Life was swell for the Earthrealm heroes. No conflict was present in the realms for a long time. Everything was peaceful. With no problems to deal with, they could get on with their lives. Kitana and Smoke had entered a relationship, as had Jade and Sub-Zero. Those four shinobis, as well as Scorpion, Mileena, Noob Saibot and Skarlet had moved to Edenia and were granted refuge in the Edenian Palace, courtesy of Kitana.**

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_No, this is not the end of the story. It is just the end of the MAIN STORY. The next few chapters will be based on Skarlet and Noob Saibot's new life, and will be told in Skarlet's POV. I am not very good at writing in first person POV but I will try my best. _

_Thank you all who have read, reviewed, favourite or followed my story. It all means so much. CryoManceR, BleedingHeartsoftheWorldUnite, Cold Recluse, mkfreak123, and MasterDragon1, I can't thank you enough for your reviews._

_Stay tuned for the next few chapters. _


	28. Start of a new life

**-This events are ~6+ months later after the Earthrealm invasion. **

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Since the fall of Shao Kahn, I had moved from Earthrealm to Edenia with the friends I had made during my life. The friends I have moved with were Kitana, Jade, Mileena, Smoke, Sub-Zero, Scorpion and Noob Saibot. Mileena was a rather weird person at first, but I eventually warmed up to her. Like me, she was artificially created by sorcery, courtesy of Shang Tsung at Shao Kahn's request. The essence of Kitana and Baraka fused into one being was what created Mileena. Though Tarkatan essence was used to create her, she did not have her teeth. I suspect that she may have gotten rid of them through some kind of spell, one which I do not know of, nor do I care for it. It does not concern me in any way, so I do not pay it any mind. All I know is that she will not – cannot – bite me or my allies. And for that, I am glad. She won't be taking out her hunger on us any time soon.

It took quite a bit of persistent nagging of Kitana to allow so many people to stay in the Edenian Palace. Sindel eventually gave in to the Princess' pleads, having grown fed up with her daughter. But we had to sleep in the same bed as the person we would be sharing a room with. But none of us had problems with that. All of us were in relationships with each other anyway, so what problems would it bring about? It wasn't like we weren't in relationships and had dalliances with strings attached.

The weather in Edenia is beautiful. I absolutely love going for long walks outside the Palace. There is no hidden nasties in Edenia, so to speak. Everywhere you go, there is either plants or flowers, sometimes both if you're lucky. But I do not mind, for it is my new home. I would have left it long ago if I didn't like it. Not only is the scenery here beautiful, but so are the people. I don't think I have eve met people that are more beautiful than the Edenians. But of course, I have Noob Saibot. And he beats all of those Edenians combined. He's so beautiful, my Bi-Han…

I have also had to face unfortunate circumstances in my new life in Edenia. I have bumped into Tanya and Rain several times here. It disappoints me to see them here, but who am I to tell them to leave? Unfortunately, I am not the Queen, so I can't do whatever I want and make Rain and Tanya 'the sorry people.'

Despite how much animosity I have for Rain, I am still respectful to him, even though I should be mounting him on my blood pillars and gutting him, then using his blood as my source of nutrition. Now that I think of it, I haven't had blood in a long time now. Scorpion, that _bastard_, killed Quan Chi. I was supposed to be the one to kill him, and then bathe in his blood. But no. The stupid demon put himself first. And for that I will always hate Scorpion, even though we are on good terms now.

Never have I seen my friends so happy in a long time. I forgot what it was like to see my best friends, Kitana and Jade, smile. I am glad that they feel happy after the fall of Shao Kahn. I am grateful that I decided to defect when I did. Or else, I couldn't be certain that I would be starting a better life in Edenia. Nor would I probably be in a relationship with Noob. We probably would have broken up, as we would have wanted different things. He'd wanted to be with his brother, but I wanted to be with Shao Kahn in Outworld. If I hadn't defected when I did, I wouldn't have met all of the people I am more than happy to call _friends_.

Soon, it will be Kitana's coronation. She will soon be the Queen of Edenia, with Smoke as her King. They had been dating two months before they decided to get engaged. I felt a little ashamed at that, because Bi-Han and I had been dating longer than Smoke and Kitana have, and we are not even engaged. Nor have we discussed any plans of getting engaged.

But in time, I know that he will propose to me. I can sense that he is jealous of Smoke and Kitana. I hope that this will indeed be some kind of turning point for him, as he will then decide to propose to me. That would be good. Sub-Zero and Jade are already discussing engagement, as are Scorpion and Mileena. That leaves Bi-Han and I as the only ones stuck in 'square one.'

I hate that. I really do. But I do not want to rush things and force him to engage me. I want him to be the one to mention something to me first. It seems fit that way. At least, I think so anyway. From what Kitana and Jade have told me, it is the male that proposes to the female. Hardly ever is it the other way around. It is said in Edenian Folklore and Mythology, that if a male proposes to the female, their marriage will last an eternity. But if it is the other way around, it will only last no longer than a year.

Hearing this makes me glad that I am not going to be the one proposing to Noob. He is my world. The only man I've ever loved. It would be heartbreaking. The very thought of losing him would be the worse thing I ever think of. And I am trying to be positive, so it's kind of conflicting with the thoughts I am having now…

I then decide to go to sleep, for Kitana's coronation is tomorrow, and I cannot afford to lose any more sleep. I haven't gotten a lot of sleep during the Earthrealm invasion. In fact, I'm certain that the only sleep I got was in the Temple of Argus. And believe me, that was _not _comfortable. There was no beds or pillows; we had to sleep on the floor. Such a thing is Greek to me, for I have never sleep on the floor before. I'm not sure why I used the phrase 'Greek to me' as I have never even heard Greek.

I bid my goodnight to everyone in the Throneroom and then head up to my chamber, which is located upstairs. I walk up several flights of stairs before I am in my bedroom. My room is painted blue and has a chest of draws that is on the left hand side of my bed. It is a brown colour that Bi-Han and I use to put our clothes in, amongst other stuff. We also have a wardrobe that is directly across the chest of draws, which we use to store our clothing. The wardrobe is massive and is able to fit both of our clothes. Since my time in Edenia and from my shopping trip in Outworld, I have a lot of new clothes aside from my red assassin outfit. Noob Saibot also wears different stuff, as do the rest of my friend.

I take off my clothes and put on my pyjamas, which consists of black pyjama pants and a white long-sleeve shirt. I suppose that the reason I feel so tired is because I haven't had blood in a while. I know that Kitana has had the servants retrieve blood for me and store it in my bedroom, so I frantically search my bedroom in search of the blood.

After what seemed like forever, I finally found my blood supply. Grabbing the blood packets, I head to the bathroom that is near my chamber. I lock the door and pour the blood into the bath. With only three packets used, the bath is full of the crimson fluid. I hastily jump in and am immediately energized by the feeling. The blood makes me feel stronger and much more energetic.

I spend some more time in the bath before I decide to get out. I put my clothes back on and head back to my chamber. Kitana's coronation is tomorrow, and I cannot wait for the party. She says that it's going to be amazing. I have never been to a party before, so I am a little unsure about what is to happen.

As soon as my head hits the pillow, I drift off to sleep.

_Sub-Zero's Bed Chamber_

Sub-Zero had taken his elder brother into his bedroom to talk. Bi-Han had informed Kuai Liang that he needed help regarding his relationship with Skarlet.

"You, Scorpion, and Smoke are engaged, or discussing engagement with your partners. I cannot muster the courage to ask Skarlet if she wants to get engaged. How did you do so with Jade?"

Kuai Liang let out a hearty chuckle, one that earned him a slap on the arm from Bi-Han. The elder brother was being serious about this, and wasn't in the mood to be laughed at. "Skarlet and I have been in a relationship longer than you have been with Jade. How is it that you are already engaged?!"

"I had Kitana help me in choosing a ring for Jade. I got her alone one night and proposed to her. She said yes. That is all you have to do, brother. It's not that hard."

If Bi-Han had known that proposing to Skarlet was so simple, he would have done so long ago. "Very well. Thank you, brother. I will seek out Kitana after the coronation tomorrow night, and have her help me with Skarlet's wedding ring." Noob Saibot then teleported to his own chamber and went straight to bed.

* * *

**-Did I do good, writing in first person? I normally don't write in that POV as I said in the last chapter, so I hope that I did okay at least. **

**Hope you enjoyed! **


	29. Coronation

I woke up the next morning feeling surprisingly energetic. Normally when I wake up, I am grouchy, lazy and tired. But today was different. I was happy, active and energetic. Sitting up, I noticed that next to me was my lover, Noob Saibot. The bed was a mess, and he was naked. We must have had sex last night, but I don't remember a thing. That could have also been a reason that I felt so energetic.

I planted a gentle kiss on Bi-Han's forehead and then got out of bed. Standing up, I headed to my wardrobe to put on some shorts, shoes and a shirt. I felt like going for a run to release the pent up energy I had this morning. Also, it was good exercise. I had been going on morning runs for a while now, and it was helping me slim down. Not that I wasn't skinny before, but this luxurious life in Edenia with all the food wasn't helping me keep down my weight. I didn't need to be slim anymore, for I was no longer an assassin. But still, it didn't hurt to stay in shape.

I reverently headed outside, and was careful not to wake Noob or anyone else. Kitana, Jade and Sindel were awake and already preparing for the coronation tonight. I found that rather ridiculous, for they would have plenty of time tonight to prepare. Waking up now to prepare for it would be frivolous. I would have waited until tonight to do so, but I dare not say anything to either of them, as they may get offended by my words, even though I don't mean to be rude. The people in Edenia seem to have low insult threshold as well, so that won't help my case at all.

I brush my thoughts aside and head out the door of the palace and immediately begin my run. As I run around the realm, I come across several trees, flowers and other natural scenery that are all of equal beauty. I stop for a moment to take in the beauty of the nature that surrounds me, but I soon find myself regretting it, for it throws a wrench in my morning run, as I am now sitting down on the grass, dipping my feet into the pond nearby.

As I looked into the pond, I did not see my reflection, but rather something much more appealing. I could see Kuai Liang and Bi-Han conversing in Sub-Zero's bedroom chamber. They must have been talking about me. And in fact, they were.

_Sub-Zero had taken his elder brother into his bedroom to talk. Bi-Han had informed Kuai Liang that he needed help regarding his relationship with Skarlet. _

"_You, Scorpion, and Smoke are engaged, or discussing engagement with your partners. I cannot muster the courage to ask Skarlet if she wants to get engaged. How did you do so with Jade?"_

_Kuai Liang let out a hearty chuckle, one that earned him a slap on the arm from Bi-Han. The elder brother was being serious about this, and wasn't in the mood to be laughed at. "Skarlet and I have been in a relationship longer than you have been with Jade. How is it that you are already engaged?!"_

"_I had Kitana help me in choosing a ring for Jade. I got her alone one night and proposed to her. She said yes. That is all you have to do, brother. It's not that hard."_

_If Bi-Han had known that proposing to Skarlet was so simple, he would have done so long ago. "Very well. Thank you, brother. I will seek out Kitana after the coronation tomorrow night, and have her help me with Skarlet's wedding ring." Noob Saibot then teleported to his own chamber and went straight to bed. _

I saw all of this unfold before my eyes in the lake. What was this place? How was it able to tell me the future like this? This lake must have some kind of bewitchment placed on it. But nonetheless, I know that Bi-Han plans to propose to me.

Wait, what?

Bi-Han's planning to propose to me?!

Oh my God. This could be the best thing that ever happens to me. In fact, it _is _the best thing that will ever happen to me. It was already good that I got to meet him, but it's even better now that I'm going to be marrying him. I truly hope that this pond isn't deceiving me. I've gotten my hopes up to the point that if things don't work out, I'll most likely crumble from disappointment. Things are working out for me now. I hope they continue to remain this way.

* * *

_Edenian Palace_

Once Kitana, Jade, and Sindel had finished setting up for the coronation that would be hosted tonight, Noob Saibot decided to make haste in his plans. Having taken Kuai Liang's advice, he decided to discuss his plans with the azure-clad woman regarding Skarlet's ring. He hoped that she would give good advice and help him pick out a ring that Skarlet liked. No, not _liked_. Loved. Admired, Adored.

"Greetings, Princess," Noob Saibot said as he bowed in respect to the Princess. She chuckled gently, "You do not need to bow, nor do you need to address me with formalities. We are friends, Bi-Han. I do not mind if you refer to me as Kitana."

For some reason that the wraith did not know, he felt ashamed with himself. How he felt now was unfamiliar to any other feeling he'd felt before. But nonetheless, he would be blunt about what he was saying. Bi-Han wanted to propose to Skarlet and he did not want silly things halting him.

"I heard you helped my brother in selecting Jade's ring."

"Yes, I did. Why do you-"

Noob abruptly cut the Princess off, "If you do not mind, I would appreciate it if you were to help me select a ring for Skarlet. You did a good job in selecting Jade's ring, and I really want to give Skarlet a nice-looking ring as well. It does not have to be chosen tonight, as you are busy with the coronation."

Kitana stared at him. "One, don't cut me off. And second, we can get the ring today, as long as we do not take forever to choose one. It is 5:00 pm now, and the party is being hosted in an hours time. So we must make haste, Bi-Han."

Bi-Han felt even more ashamed with himself for having disappointed the Princess. "Alright then. Let us go. I know of a jewellery place in the Edenian Markets." And with that, he created a portal to the Markets, which Noob Saibot and Kitana hastily stepped through.

They soon found themselves in the middle of the shopping centre, standing at the entrance of a jewellery store. Kitana and Noob Saibot hastily approached the store and immediately began looking at the rings that the shop sold. There were small, golden rings with purple, blue, red, and green gems. Some of the rings were silver, others black or yellow. Neither of the duo found a ring that they both liked for Skarlet, until…

They came across one that was silver-gold and had a pure white gem. The gem was as white as snow and looked very, very pretty. Skarlet would surely like the ring. Bi-Han would be more than happy to give it to her.

"It's…" He couldn't even find the words to describe how he felt about the ring before him. It's appearance was so dazzling that it would take several brain racks before he could come up with a single _word _to describe it. Kitana couldn't even described what it looked like, for she too, was wordless.

"I know, I can't even come up with a word to describe it. Words like _pretty _and _elegant _don't even come close to what it truly looks like. I am most certain that Skarlet will adore that ring, Bi-Han."

His heart pounded furiously and the revenant felt as though he was going to have a heart attack. "Alright, we will get this one."

Kitana went to the counter and acquired the ring off one of the workers. Since she was the Princess, she need not pay for anything, so there was no money involved. Bi-Han felt immensely indebted to the azure-clad woman. She had done a lot for him.

* * *

_The Pond of Truth_

I suddenly realised that I had been here for several hours now. I could not believe that, for I would never normally spend such a long time outside. But I suppose that it was due to the Edenian scenery being so attractive and calming, and the water that I dipped my feet in was nice and cold and refreshing.

I put on my shoes and ran back to the Palace. I could see Bi-Han and Kitana emerge from a black portal and that my lover was carrying a bag. I could see a small box-shape outline in the bag, and knew that something was up. I had to find out what they did. But try as I might, I could never bring myself to attack the Princess or interrogate her, nor could I do as such to Bi-Han.

I headed into my chamber and put on some new clothes. I selected a red ninja garb that a jacket attached to it. With that I also sported red leggings and black kombat boots, as well as gloves. I did not need my armour or weapons on me, nor did I need my mask. Most of the males were wearing tuxedos or suit-like outfits, whilst most of the women were wearing dresses. I was wearing something different to them. Much different.

6:30 hit quicker than anticipated, and soon, almost everybody in Edenia, as well as the Earthrealm Heroes that I fought alongside during the Invasion, had arrived in the Edenian Palace. Kitana had without a question invited them, whilst her and Sindel had organised who would and wouldn't be going out of the Edenians. As they were royalty, they could invite anyone they wished. Fair enough.

Everyone was summoned into the ball room, where the coronation was hosted. We all stood before the stage, which Kitana and Sindel stood on. The Edenian Princess gave us a speech about her ideas and orders for when she became Queen. I was very proud and happy for the Princess that she had come this far. Kitana had come a long way since the day I'd met her in Outworld. She's much more mature and smarter, and even more sensible. Everything she does has reason, which is a rare feat in most people.

I know that she will be an excellent Queen, no doubt. Something else that I am certain of is that everyone else agrees with me.

After the speech, everybody celebrated. The music was playing and everybody was dancing and drinking. We all had a good time. The newly-crowned Queen was dancing with Smoke, who seemed to be getting more intoxicated by the minute. Jade and Sub-Zero were dancing together, and seemed to be at peace with themselves. They were cute together.

Sometime later into the night, I was grabbed by Noob Saibot and taken outside. He seemed to be in a horrible mood, but over what I was not certain. But I wasn't happy that he wasn't enjoying himself. Our wellbeing at this party was just as important as the celebration itself.

"Noob, what's wrong?"

He did not say anything; instead, he pulled out a box and got on one knee. Oh my God – the vision was right! I knew that this would happen! Kitana must have helped him get the ring, like how she did with Sub-Zero! This all made sense now!

"Will you marry me, Skarlet?"

* * *

**-Aw, how sweet! Hope you enjoyed this chapter. More are coming soon. **


	30. Proposal

**-There is a fruit in this chapter. Can you guess what kind?**

* * *

"Will you marry me, Skarlet?"

Those words constantly replayed in my mind as I looked at my lover, who was still on one knee, holding out an open box that contained the ring. It was beautiful; the ring itself was a silver gold colour and the gem was white. It was the most pretty thing I had ever seen! Bi-Han had done such a good job. I feel indebted to Kitana for helping him.

I was slowly reduced to tears as my eyes raked over Bi-Han and the ring. Oh my God, could my life get any better right now? I was living in royalty and now, my lover wants to marry me. I seriously wonder if anything can top those two things.

"Of course I will, Bi-Han," I said, my voice shaky and weak. I was inwardly disappointed in myself for having my voice sound like that, but what could I do? I instead took the ring and placed it on my ring finger. Bi-Han put the box in his pocket and gave me the biggest hug ever. I had never been in a warmer hug before.

As we embraced, he kissed and sucked my neck, hard enough to leave a hickey. They coated my neck, but I didn't care. I grabbed him by the back of the head and roughly crushed his lips to mine. Our tongues soon got involved, our red appendages massaging against each other's and exploring every nook and cranny. We pulled away when air became a need, and decided to retire to the bedroom.

He grabbed my hand and took me back to our chamber. We passed through the ballroom. I noticed that the music was getting quieter, and not a lot of people were dancing anymore. Instead they were sitting at the tables, eating, drinking, conversing, or sleeping. Some people, Smoke and Sub-Zero in particular, had passed out from drinking too much. I knew that Kitana was a little disappointed, for he was going to become King and him getting drunk wasn't exactly setting a good example. But this party would be the last time either of them would be able to have a good time, so I could tell that she was being rather lenient on Smoke.

Either way, they deserved to enjoy this night. It was their special day and they were the ones that deserved to enjoy it most. Let them have fun and let their hair down, for the rest of their lives, most likely, would be devoted to ruling a realm. BORING!

We then headed into our bedroom chamber without further ado. Noob locked the door and we immediately started getting naked. We knew what we wanted to do. This would be celebration sex, for lack of a better word.

Noob placed his mouth on my neck and immediately continued his previous ministrations. He nipped, licked and sucked from my neck to my breasts. When he came to my breasts he licked his lips and sucked on them. I moaned out loudly and roughly grabbed him by the back of the head and shoved his face into my bosom. I made sure that he payed attention to the other breast as well.

He then travelled down my chest, not missing a spot on my skin. An ornery grin was on his face and I knew that he was going to do something naughty. And I was proven right when he spread my legs with his hands, revealing my mound.

Bi-Han rubbed my hairless navel before sticking his head inbetween my legs and worked his magic by using his tongue. His red appendage moved around my pussy in circular motions. I cried out his name more times than I ever had. When he ate me out before, it felt different to how it felt now. I do not know why this is, but I am not complaining. He continued using his tongue before placing his entire mouth on my navel and finishing what he had started.

As I released the first time, Bi-Han stuck three fingers into me. "Come for me again," he rasped out, his voice husky and lustful. I released several more times, my juices landing on his fingers. He licked my juices off of his fingers before grabbing his penis and holding it in front of me. I had no problem with what he wanted me to do.

I started licking the underside, gracefully running my tongue along it. He growled and started to moan from the pleasure. I then took half of him in my mouth, teasing my lover. I could easily take all of him in, but it was fun to tease him, as he had adorable reactions. I then decided to take things up a notch and take his entire shaft in my mouth, earning a loud cry from my lover.

I bobbed my head up and down on his shaft and listened to his groans, which were music to my ears. I licked the head and used my fingers to tickle his balls. I loved watching my lover squirm in ecstasy.

Before he could release, he stopped and pulled out of me. Bi-Han then summoned Saibot, who thrust his erect shaft into my backside, earning a loud hiss from me. It didn't hurt, but it wasn't exactly the best feeling either. But the subtle pain soon turned to pleasure when Noob took me from the front. I felt full, but I wouldn't have it any other way.

Both males pounded relentlessly in and out of me, their movements in sync with each other. It felt so good to have two 'people' fucking me at once. For a person that wasn't entirely real, Saibot was great in bed, but Noob was better at this, of course, for he got much more action than his clone.

The two males bent their heads down so that their faces were buried in the crook of my neck and began feasting on the supple flesh. Noob decided to take things up a notch and suck on my bosoms. Saibot continued feasting on my neck.

Loud screams and moans of pleasure rung throughout the room, courtesy of me. Noob and Saibot's animalistic groans turned me on even more. "Noob…Saibot…fuck me faster!"

And they did. I had never felt such power come from anyone like this before. They pounded even faster than they were before. I could feel my walls beginning to tighten, and it made Noob growl even louder than before.

"Skarlet, I'm going to cum!"

True to his word, Noob released a gallon of sperm. It was like he'd unleashed every single cell of his sperm into me. Saibot also released, more of less the same amount as his 'other half.' Either way, I felt satisfied.

"That was fun," I said, my voice husky and lust-filled. Noob laughed darkly as he pulled himself out of me and cleaned up. I followed suite and decided to go to sleep, in no clothes at all.

* * *

**-Short chapter, I know. More chapters coming soon.**


	31. A Family

**-Time lapses in this chapter**.

* * *

When I awoke the next morning, I felt horrible. My stomach felt as though it was doing backflips, over and over again. My stomach constantly churned and I felt bile come up my throat several times. I also found myself making frequent toilet runs.

From the education I had back in Outworld, courtesy of Kitana and Jade, I had learnt about sexual education, contraception, and pregnancy. I learnt that some of the common pregnancy symptoms were vomiting and morning sickness. This was starting to make sense now… But where was this going? Where would my thought train take me, with the belief that I was pregnant? What else would I end up thinking?

Goddamnit! I was hoping to have a child _after _I got married, not the other way around! Now it'll be harder to choose a dress, as I'll have a protruding belly! A fat belly that won't cooperate with my plans, but rather throw wrench after wrench in them. Could things get any worse?

Well, I suppose things could be, actually. I would rather have Noob's baby than someone else's. So if things were worse, I could have gotten pregnant by something like _Scorpion_, or even worse, _Quan Chi_. No doubt they had nice bodies and no doubt Scorpion was _hot_, to say the least, but I would not want to head into that department with them. I didn't love them like that. In fact, I didn't even _like _them at all, despite the fact that I am nice to Scorpion. And, well, with Quan Chi, I guess how I feel about him goes without saying, as I wanted to kill him, even though it was for the Emperor. But now that I think about it, the reason I wanted to assassinate Quan Chi was so that he wouldn't bring ruin to my home, or pose as a threat any longer.

Besides, life without either Shao Kahn, Quan Chi, or Shang Tsung was much more peaceful. There was no conflict, no destruction, no ruin, no sadness, no devastation. I could get used to this life. In fact, I already have. Haha!

Today was mostly composed of toilet runs, emotional breakdowns, and sleeping. I was seriously beginning to think that I was pregnant. But how come I didn't get pregnant the first time I had sex with Noob? Perhaps we used some kind of unknown contraception. I do not know why it's now and was not then. But either way, I will soon be a mother.

I wonder what traits of mine will be passed on to my child. And what traits of Noob's will be evident in the child. I also wonder what gender my child will be, and what name Bi-Han and I will agree on. It all depends on the gender, though. These thoughts soon leave my mind as I drift off to sleep in my bed.

The next day is the same routine. More vomiting, more emotional breakdowns, more sleeping, more thoughts about my child. But then I realise that since I am solely composed of blood, that I may not be able to carry this child. Uh, what?

Yes, indeed. Though there are only two hemomancers in the world, well technically one, as I am the only one alive, I have never heard of a hemomancer or blood centric creature be able to naturally carry a baby to full term. But I can only hope that my child will be able to be carried to full term.

On the first day of my crazy routine, Noob hadn't payed it any mind whatsoever. But as of today, he was starting to become suspicious. He had never seen me cry so much; hell, he hadn't even seen me cry. Nor did he think I could vomit at all. Bi-Han never saw me sleep so much either.

"Skarlet, what's the matter? All you have been doing for the past few days is vomiting, crying, and sleeping. What's gotten into you?" My lover enquired, his voice grief-stricken. I couldn't wait to see his reaction, nor could I wait to see the reaction of my other allies. I wonder if they would be happy for me, or if they would be angry or possibly jealous, or if they would shun me and call me a whore, for I was pregnant and not married. But what could I do? It was not planned. We did not even think we were going to have sex, so we did not think of contraception methods.

I turned to face my lover, "I think I am pregnant, Bi-Han. Can you not tell? Do you not recognise the signs? My morning sickness and vomiting, my constant fatigue and emotional breakdowns?"

His face immediately fell, not that his expression was happy to begin with. I could tell he wasn't ready to be a father. No way would he be ready to have a child. Though I do not doubt that Bi-Han will be a good parent, I worry about this baby. Will both of us be good parents? Will we be the world's worst parents?

I inwardly condemn myself for thinking such thoughts, as I am supposed to be positive and not thinking bad thoughts. But it cannot be helped, for I am worried sick about this child, and how Bi-Han and I will raise it. I hope that my hemomancer genes will be more prominent in the child, as that way, it will be easier to raise, for I am a hemomancer. But I think the child will be upset if he does not inherit Noob's good looks. I would be if I were the baby.

"Er…what?" Was Bi-Han's reply. I do not think he can bring himself to comprehend what I have just told him. It is now completely clear that he is not ready to be a father. But whether he likes it or not, he WILL help me raise this child. It's OUR child. His seed was what ultimately gave it life.

"Yes, Bi-Han. We may have a baby on the way." Oh what? Being blunt was the only way to go in certain situations. And seeing that Noob wasn't entirely comprehending what was going on, I was going to break it to him straight by telling him like how it was. There was no nice way to say it, nor was there any point in sugarcoating it. It's a CHILD we're talking about here. This will be my first time being a parent, so I really want to do a good job.

His face immediately rose. I do not know what part of what I said made him change from being in a state of despair to being on some kind of bliss, but he was a lot happier than before. I was glad that Bi-Han finally caught on to what I was saying, and had gotten his act together.

Noob Saibot approached me and wrapped me in his warm embrace, and whispered in my ear, "We'll get through this, Skarlet. We'll be great parents, and I am more than certain that you'll be able to carry this baby to full term. Don't you worry about that."

How the hell did he know about my internal conflict? He must have read my mind or something. I'm glad that he would be supporting me the whole way. The way he embraced me made me wish that he could hug me all day, every day. His arms were so strong and warm and I loved how warm and fuzzy they made me feel.

* * *

_Four Months Later_

Even though I had only been carrying this baby for half the months it would take to deliver it, I was 100% sure that it would be able to be carried to full term. The baby kept me awake with the kicking and it's constant movement. It felt weird, having a little person inside of you.

I had monthly doctors appointments for check-ups on the baby. I had found out that the baby was a girl, but kept this information secret from everyone. Such knowledge was for me and me only. Plus, I did not like it when things were spoilt, for myself and others, so I was not going to be the one to spoil the baby's gender for everyone.

The bump is a lot bigger than it was before. I have definitely gained more weight. Almost everything I do now is eat. Eat, sleep, vomit, cry. Nothing but that. I wish that time would fly already so that I could give birth to this baby. It was really shitting me.

* * *

_Five Months Later_

On August 17th, at 5:30 in the afternoon, I felt my waters breaking. The pain was excruciating. It was more painful than when Shang Tsung had removed Carnala's soul from my body. And that hurt. That really fucking hurt. If my water breaking hurts, I cannot imagine how much _delivering _the baby will hurt. And I wanted the baby to be delivered already.

Ha. Big mistake.

Noob Saibot teleported Kitana, Jade and I to a hospital for the baby to be delivered as soon as my water broke. Jade successfully seduced one of the workers into giving us an immediate appointment. I am grateful for that, or else I would have given birth in the waiting room. Giving birth in front of all those people was probably not going to be pretty. Plus, I wanted to have some kind of privacy when I delivered the baby! I'm not a whore!

A male nurse immediately took us into a ward for the baby to be delivered. I immediately felt my contractions start to kick in, and then I was constantly being told to push, by the nurses, Kitana, Jade, and Bi-Han. I thought the pain was excruciating – fuck, it was much worse than before! It was like the pain was slowly going to kill me. I prayed that something like that wouldn't happen, though.

After all those pushes, the baby was delivered. My little girl. The baby was taken away by the nurses, cleaned, and dressed in a blue baby onesie. It looked adorable!

A million female names rushed through my head as my eyes raked over it. It looked so much like me…I kind of felt bad for Bi-Han. The baby's hair was red, and her eyes were blue. What a colour contrast. It's eyes were the only thing that it had of Bi-Han.

Everyone in the room – the nurses and my friends, agreed that the baby was indeed cute. "What should we name it, Skarlet?" My fiancée abruptly asked me.

"Hmm…I think we should call it either Camilla, or Rose, or Amelia. I am fine with either of them."

He looked at the baby, deep in thought. "I think we should call our daughter Rose. It suits her, very much so."

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_One week later_

Rose and I had been released from the hospital, and we could do nothing but rest. Sindel found Kitana's old baby equipment from the time the Queen was once a little girl, so we used that to save money and time. It was very helpful indeed. I felt even more indebted to Kitana and Sindel.

Rose was a very serene child. She did not cry a lot. She mostly slept. When she was not in her slumber, Rose was either crawling around or playing with her toys. She seemed to be afraid of Scorpion. I guess that must have been passed down from me to her. Haha!

This is, no doubt, the happiest I have felt in my life. To be given the gift of having a family is just incredible. I will need all the help I can get in raising my daughter, as even though I am a good mother, I still need a lot of help. Raising a child is a lot of work.

The pregnancy business was over. Now it was time for the wedding bells to chime!

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**-Skarlet is…very funny…when she's in pain… o.O**

**-Don't ask me why but I can imagine her as an emotional pregnant woman that cries and eats a lot. And I can imagine Noob as a crazy father who lets his child do anything they want. I really do have a good imagination…**


	32. Epilogue

**-Final chapter of the story. I've made this a much longer story than anticipated. 32 chapters is a record breaker for me; The Aftermath was the longest story I'd written, being 28 chapters. But look where I've gone with this story now…**

**I can't thank all you readers and reviews enough for your endless support and kindness. You all rock!**

**This chapter is one year after Rose's birth.**

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It had been a year since Rose had been born. I had come a long way from being an unexperienced mother to an amazing mother that had everything regarding my child's safety down packed. Noob was an excellent father, a much better than people had anticipated him to be. Everyone thought of him as a negligent parent that just let his child do everything, but I suppose that seeing him take Rose for a stroll around all of Edenia was what made them change their minds about him. Another factor was that he had been changing her diapers and feeding her and bathing her and putting her to sleep.

Now that all of this pregnancy business was out of the way, it would now be time for the wedding bells to chime. Noob had proposed to me one year ago, but due to my pregnancy, we were so caught up in looking after the baby that we hadn't any time to prepare for the wedding. Of course, with Rose being born, we could continue on with our plans for the wedding.

Kitana, Jade and I had been discussing the topic of dresses for quite a long time now. I really wanted a dress that was flowy and elegant somewhat over the top. I wanted nothing more than to be the centre of attention on my special day. I think everybody understood that all brides wanted to be the centre of attention on their wedding day. And we should.

I would also like for my dress to be white, like the gem on my ring. That colour oddly suited me for some reason, even though I had grown up wearing red almost all of my life. That colour was the traditional colour of the hemomancers. It was what defined our blood centric features. Besides, red was a sexy look on most people.

Our wedding was to be in the Throneroom, which would be set up on the day to accommodate all the guests. I had decided on inviting Raiden and the Earthrealm heroes – Johnny Cage, Sonya Blade, Kabal, Stryker, Liu Kang, Kung Lao, Jax, and Nightwolf. That was nine guests already. It went without saying that Smoke, Sub-Zero, Jade, Kitana, Sindel, Scorpion, and Mileena would be going, no matter how much I hated that goddamned spectre. I was friends with Mileena, so I think it'd be only fair that I invited her as well. When you invite someone that's in a relationship, but you don't invite their other, it's very rude.

So far, that was 16 people. I was not sure as to who else Noob Saibot or I could invite. I did not think of any other people to invite to my wedding. Besides, I did not want to invite random Edenian people to attend my wedding. It was my special day so I only wanted people that were close to be to be there. It wasn't like it was a coronation or something, that directly affected the citizens.

Sindel had assigned an Edenian sorceress named Delia to be the Priestess. I did not mind who would be the one to host the ceremony, I just wanted there to be a host that would do a good job. But I knew that the Edenian sorceress would do a good job. You could just tell she would, anyway.

Within a week, everything had been arranged. The food, the drinks, the reception, the guests…you name it and we've prepared it. I cannot believe how quick it was all set out. I would have expected Bi-Han and I to be stressing to no end about this wedding, but there wasn't any of that. We were all happy, on the inside and the outside. Nobody was stressing at all.

The day of the wedding came before anyone knew it. I was more giddy than nervous. We had done several rehearsals of the wedding, but it suddenly occurred to me that someone could forget what to say. Both Noob and I had been instructed by Delia to prepare our vows, which is like an oath that we make to our partner at the wedding. I hope my vow appeals to Noob. I do not care what anyone else thinks of it, for they are not as lucky as Bi-Han is to be marrying me. I wonder what Bi-Han's vows are.

I got dressed into my wedding attire, which consisted of a flowy white dress and black flats, as well as a white veil. The dress made me feel so elegant, so important, so pure, so beautiful.

Noob looked so hot in his tuxedo. Like mine, his attire was white. It contrasted with his black skin. He looked so professional and sexy…Mmmm. He looked even more delicious than how he normally did.

Kitana and Jade were my bridesmaids whilst Sub-Zero was Bi-Han's best man. The two brothers had gotten very close over the years. They were like two peas in a pod, but were like chalk and cheese. Very different people yet still so alike somehow. It daunts on me how that can be; again, it is like Greek to me.

I walked up to the altar with Sindel next to me, and Noob walked up to the altar with Smoke next to him. Delia stood in front of the Altar and immediately began speaking when everybody had settled down. Johnny Cage, the photographer, was taking several photos. He finally had been given the opportunity to make himself useful…

"Today marks the day of the unity between Skarlet and Bi-Han. These two warriors have come a long, long way from being friends to now being betrothed to one another. May the Elder Gods make their union forever lasting. You may exchange your vows."

I went first. "Bi-Han…You're my best friend, my world, my lover, my everything. I knew that the day I was assigned to protect you was the beginning of a new era in my life. I knew that I was going to have an entirely new look on things, as well as a purpose. You made me feel like I was important; you didn't assign me on missions, nor did you use me for anything. You're a great father, and a great man…I wish our bond to last forever. I love you, Bi-Han."

'AWS' could be heard in the church. Now it was Bi-Han's turn. I hoped that his vows didn't make me cry even harder. I was already emotional from saying my vows, damnit!

"Skarlet…I knew that we would end up being more than just a bodyguard and a client. I knew that we would eventually become friends. I knew that from the moment we met, that I would eventually fall in love with you, and you would love me. But our love began from the moment we met. I wouldn't swap you for another woman anyday, nor would I like to go back in time and undo our meeting. You're my world, and I absolutely love you, more than anything. I love you, Skarlet."

By now, everyone was crying, or at least touched by our vows. Delia looked like she was about to burst into tears from the words Noob Saibot and I exchanged in our vows. "By the Elder Gods, I bond you two as one. You may kiss your bride."

Our lips gently pressed together, but before we knew it, we were kissing like we were about to have sex. Being in public, I did not want to put our guests off, so we pulled away from each other.

We were now married. My life was complete. I had a daughter, a husband, and a family. I am so glad I met Bi-Han, or else I would be stuck in Shao Kahn's Fortress, forced to complete endless amounts of missions and had no life of my own.

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_We all lived happily ever after. After us, Scorpion and Mileena tied the knot, soon followed by Jade and Sub-Zero. Sindel sadly passed on, but Kitana took her place and did an excellent job in replacing her mother as Queen. May the realms forever know peace…_

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**-The end! God, I thought this story was going to take forever to write for some reason! But I'm glad I finished it on the weekend. Next up is my AHS fic which will be posted sometime this week. Mkfreak123, if i've forgotten anything, please remind me in the reviews! Lol **

**I hope you all enjoyed this story, as I sure as hell enjoyed writing it. This story got 5,439 hits! That's the most I've ever gotten. I cannot thank all those who've read this enough. **


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